Ministry reports ‘unusually high’ maize exports in Dec despite shortage

Money Markets A shopper in a supermarket’s maize flour section . PHOTO | FILE 

By GERALD ANDAE

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Summary

• The ministry’s maize stock and trade assessment report dated February 10 shows that the export increased in November and December.
• The total in-flows in January were 80,122 bags of 90 kilogrammes.
• Tanzania is one of the regional countries that Kenya relies on to supplement the local stocks.

The Ministry of Agriculture says that there were unusually high maize exports to Uganda at the end of 2016, even as the country faced up to a shortage due to lower than expected harvests.

The ministry’s maize stock and trade assessment report dated February 10 shows that the export increased in November and December as higher prices in that country attracted traders.
The move by traders forced Kenya to ban exports of grain. Normally there are maize flows from Uganda to Kenya at that time of the year.
“The assessment confirmed that there were unusual out-flows of maize, mainly to Uganda in November and early December, unlike other years when maize moves from Uganda to Kenya,” says the report on country’s food situation.
“However, in January 2017 there were minimal cross border in-flows from Uganda at a generally increased price compared to other years,” it added.
The total in-flows in January were 80,122 bags of 90 kilogrammes. The Suam border point registered 3,745 bags, Malaba 35, 878 bags, Busia border point 38,000 bags.
The ministry says most of these stocks were destined for Kitui, Mombasa, Lunga Lunga and Machakos.

“No maize was reported to be coming in from Tanzania, during the same period, but some out-flows towards Tanzania were noted as from January 2017 at the Namanga and Telekia border points,” the report said.
Tanzania has also restricted grain exports as it moves to guard its national stocks following anticipated shortage of grain in the country.
DEFICIT
Tanzania is one of the regional countries that Kenya relies on to supplement the local stocks, but the recent directive leaves the country at crossroads given that Uganda did not have a good crop in the last season to cover up for deficit in Kenya.
Kenya is facing a shortage of grain that has seen the price of a 90 kilogramme (kg) bag retail at Sh3,700, pushing up the cost of flour to a five-year high of Sh120 for a two kilogramme packet.
The depressed long rains performance last year resulted in a total output of 32.8 million bags of maize against an expected production of 38 million bags—a short fall of 5.2 million bags.
According to the food report, food stocks at various levels- households, traders and millers, are below optimal for this time of the year.
The stocks held by farmers are estimated at 10 million bags, traders, 2.7 million bags, millers 993,637 bags, and National Cereals and Produce Board has a total of 1.4 million bags.