More than 60,000 metric tonnes of wheat harvested in Zambia last year has not been sold because of cheap imports from neighbouring countries.
The Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU) says it has formally written to the ministry of agriculture to complain about the continued import of wheat which is choking the local industry.
ZNFU President, Jervis Zimba, says government allowed three millers to import about 7,000 metric tonnes of wheat in September last year but the millers allegedly imported about 20,000 metric tonnes.
He told jounalists that the flooding of the market with imported wheat will suffocate the local industry, which has blossomed over the past few years.
Mr. Zimba also said government has rejected a proposal to increase the floor price of maize from K65,000 to K75,000 to enable farmers make a profit.
Last month, government announced a maize floor price of K65,000.
[ZNBC]
Yaba
why can’t the government supports and protect its on farmers? even in the name of free market the governments still has to protect and support its own people… Also ban the import of second hand cloths to improve the zambian textile industry:)((((
Some of these things have to do with poor PACKAGING and MARKETING I think. Never underestimate the powers of these two things…….
I am for Competition and not Monopoly. Maybe the local wheat farmers should find a solution to marketing and managing their product more efficiently and effectively rather than trying to monopolies the market i.e GRZ levies, tax issue, packaging etc. Start by asking yourselves why imported wheat is selling more than the local to begin with…….
It is important the goverment lowers taxes on local wheat products, make it easy for them to sell their products and enforces rules asap which only allow wheat imports when local wheat production can not meet demand. We protect our agriculture sector by doing that. Zed has alot of potential to be a leader in agriulture in Africa with support because of the massive land we have. Look at the benefits if Zambia’s number one priority is to encourage local production this stimulates the economy . We need to understand if we buy Zed made products instead of imported goods …… Zambians spend the money in Zambia , keep the money in Zambia , the goverment benefits from the tax and moreover the Zambian wheat producer is able to create employment in Zambia:)
The Ministry of Agriculture main objective is to protect the local produce from the Zambian farmers. They need to have a long term and short term goals for farmers. They should help them market their products. The farmers should always be prioritised when it comes to selling their products. We need to stop depending on copper and agriculture is an alternative in developing the nation. To hear about this wheat situation is sad for Zambia. What is the vision for the Ministry of Agriculture promoting the agriculture sector? What are they doing to support farmers? What incentives are they proposing for people and the future generation to become farmers????Vison is important