Maize farming [Photo: Farmsquare]
Warehouse Receipt System Council chairperson Jane Ngigi says the high prices of maize has made it unable to stock the grain for growers in the ongoing season.
She says this has seen farmers avoid storing their commodity at the warehouses, as they seek to enjoy the prevailing prices in the market by selling their harvest directly to consumers.
Meanwhile, maize prices have hit a high of 5,000 shillings for a 90Kg bag.
This comes at a time when the millers warn that the cost of flour might rise to 230 shillings for a 2 Kg packet if the current maize prices persist.
The official said they would now focus on other commodities that have also been adopted under the Warehouse Receipt System, including potatoes, beans, green grams and coffee.
“For now we can focus on these commodities, which have also been prioritised under the WRS as we wait for normalization of the maize crop,” said Ngigi.
Elsewhere, the East African Grain Council CEO Gerald Masila says that the 2021/2022 crop year did not have a good yield and that there will be a very big gap to fill even as harvesting is ongoing in parts of North and Central Rift regions
“Even with the coming harvest, our estimation is that we might be at 60 per cent of a good normal harvest, but still face a deficit in the coming year, which could go as high as 35 percent,” said Masila.
He added that the maize being traded in the market is also not dry enough as it has not dropped its moisture content to 13.5 percent according to the standards.