The Sunday Mail
The country’s maize production hangs in the balance following Government’s move to step aside from purchasing the staple grain. Last week Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Deputy Minister responsible for livestock Paddy Zhanda told Parliament that farmers should sell their maize to private millers since Government did not have money to pay them.
Farmers predict a gloomy picture in next season’s maize production as private buyers are currently offering low prices for the harvested grain.
Government set the benchmark price at US$390 per tonne, but the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) has failed to raise money to purchase the grain, a situation that the private buyers are capitalising on. They are offering farmers as little as US$300 per tonne.
At a Grain Indaba held last week, the Grain Millers’ Association of Zimbabwe indicated that buyers were only prepared to pay no more than $310 per tonne of maize.
The GMB currently owes farmers nearly US$2 million for maize previously delivered. The board has indicated that it can no longer continue buying grain due to financial constraints.
The parastatal has the mandate to stock the country’s strategic grain reserves.
Sadly, its depots countrywide are currently dry and its silo facilities are being leased to private players.
Farmers say the precarious situation that GMB finds itself in is exposing them to manipulation by private maize buyers who are only after making huge profits.
The farmers say the prices being offered by private players are too low and “it would be difficult to return to the fields next season.”
But Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers’ Union president Mr Wonder Chabikwa said the situation was unfortunate.
“When next season comes, the farmer will not be having any money to fund production and will be left with no option but to approach the contractor for funding. Contract farming is not helping us in any way, but making us perpetual slaves considering that our input costs are high while the producer price is very low,” said Mr Chabikwa.
“While contract farming is good theoretically, the playing field between farmers and contractors is not level since contractors are offering prices as low as $280 per tonne.”
Some farmers have threatened to hold on to their grain or convert it into stockfeed which can bring higher returns.
Zimbabwe National Farmers’ Union (ZNFU) president Mr Edward Dune said: “We would rather produce stockfeeds for our livestock than sell our hard-earned grain at such low prices.”
The country has been facing grain shortages for many years and has had to rely on imports to meet the annual human and livestock demand of about 2,4 million metric tonnes.
However, there are indications that at least 1,8 million metric tonnes could be achieved from the just ended cropping season following good rains.
But it is the pricing issue that has resulted in farmers crying foul.
Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Deputy Minister responsible for Crops and Irrigation Development Mr Davis Marapira said he was out of town and referred all questions to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry Mr Ringson Chitsiko.
Mr Chitsiko, however, refused to comment saying only Dr Made could comment in his ministry.
“In our ministry, only Dr Joseph Made can comment, I am not allowed to talk to the media,” he said.
However, efforts to get a comment from Dr Made were fruitless as he claimed he was in a meeting since Tuesday up to the end of day on Friday.
