Maravi

Mazabuka maize farmers reject floor price

Mazabuka maize farmers reject floor price
By Staff Reporter
Mon 03 May 2010, 03:50 CAT

FARMERS in Mazabuka’s maize productive areas have rejected the floor price announced by the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) on grounds that it is too little considering the high cost of production.

The farmers from Chikankata, Malabo, Upper Kaleya and Chivuna areas charged that the K65,000 was too little considering the high cost of inputs and the recent hike in the price of fuel which they said would disadvantage them.

“Farmers won’t get any profit because the price of fertiliser and seed were too high last farming season. Farmers had to buy expensive fertiliser from shops because the government sponsored Farmer Input and Support Programme reduced the number of bags given to beneficiary farmers.

So the government and other stakeholders could have put such factors into consideration,” one farmer complained.

Another farmer, John Mweemba from Chikankata accused the government of killing the agriculture sector by what he termed as imposing lower market prices that were only there to disadvantage them.

Mweemba said farmers were frustrated by the floor price announced by the FRA and would not offload their commodity to the FRA.

“It does not make economic sense for the government to maintain last year’s maize marketing price when farmers paid more for the fertiliser, seed and now the recent hiked fuel prices.

Government should realise that once farmers are frustrated, the development poses a serious danger to national food security,” said Mweemba.

Another farmer, who only identified himself as Moonga, advised the government to stop politicising the agriculture sector because doing so would plunge the country into food insecurity.

Moonga said the opening of the maize marketing season was political and would have adverse implications because the moisture content in the grains was still high.

He warned that should the government start buying the commodity now, the maize could go to waste.
Moonga advised the ministry of agriculture to stop Mazabuka district commissioner Tyson Hamaamba from interfering in the running of the district agriculture committee because that was a fertile ground for office abuse.

The government launched the crop marketing season last week and pegged the floor price of maize at K65,000.

Labels: JOHN MWEEMBA, MAIZE, MAZABUKA DISTRICT

posted by MrK @ 4:48 AM