adminAccording to a recent statement by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, the maize consumer price fell 8 percent in May from 57 cents per kilogramme to 32 cents per kilogramme.
This is despite the fact that millers in the country have challenged the gazetted price of US$285 per tonne, which they say is unprofitable.
The Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe has said it is in fact cheaper to import maize from Zambia and South African markets from where it lands in Zimbabwe at US$220 per to- nne.
The importation of grain from these and other markets is perhaps a contributing factor to the decline in the price of maize locally.
At the same time, the decline in the price of maize is characteristic at this time of the year. It is, therefore, not necessarily reflective of the commodity pricing trends in the long run for this year as a number of international food and/or economic institutions have forecast an upturn in the commodity prices in the outlook period.
Earlier this year, for instance, United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation director of trade and markets Mr David Hallam noted that the global food situation remained unstable.
“Unexpected oil-price spikes could further exacerbate an already precarious situation in food markets,”
“This adds even more uncertainty concerning the price outlook,” he said.
Meanwhile, most consumer products have been on an upward trend, albeit marginal, since the beginning of the year, with figures from the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe for the month of May showing that the consumer basket rose from US$501 79 in April to US$504 03 in May.
Online Reporter