Grain millers say they can supply enough maize meal to consumers to mitigate the El Niño-induced drought which is expected to reduce yields drastically.
Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) president Tafadzwa Musarara on Tuesday said they have imported more than 200 000 metric tonnes of maize since October last year. Musarara told NewsDay:
The grain milling sector is fully geared to adequately provide maize meal during this current drought season. This is not the first time to encounter such adversity.
Our ability to import sufficient stocks of maize is on record. From mid-October 2023 to date, for instance, we imported 207 000 metric tonnes of maize. The activity continues.
This comes after Harare experienced a shortage of mealie meal during the past several weeks.
The maize meal shortage was attributed to high demand during the holiday season, coupled with supply chain issues.
In response, the Government recently called an urgent meeting with different stakeholders to come up with a plan of action to ensure that mealie meal is available.
Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) president Denford Mutashu told NewsDay that mealie-meal deliveries have resumed in Harare. He said:
Deliveries only started on Saturday in the central business district and surrounding areas.
Today (on Monday), about 10 residential areas are receiving deliveries, for instance, Mabvuku, Mbare, Chitungwiza, Highfield, Glenview, Mufakose, Hatcliffe, Budiriro and Dzivaresekwa.
Deliveries are made through formal shops and CZR urges shop managers to not tarnish their brands by diverting the product to the black market as the mealie-meal is serialised.
On 3 January 2024, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce met key stakeholders, including various Government Agencies and the Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe to deliberate on the maize supply situation in the country.
In a statement issued after the meeting, the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Sithembiso said grain millers expressed their commitment to supply the country with adequate maize meal.
She said the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) had also committed to avail and distribute maize to the millers through its various depots countrywide.
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