Kalumbila District Farmers Association Chairperson, Nsubula Hachipabeenda says the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) crop price for white maize does not reflect business reality following the announcement of crop prices yesterday.
Mr Hachipabeenda told ZANIS that a crop price of K250 for white maize instead of K160 would have been helpful considering the price of fertilizers on the market.
“Where a 50 kilogramme bag of D-compound and Urea is fetching between K800 and K1, 100, a K250 would reflect business sense,” he said.
Mr Hachipabeenda however said he has not received any complaints from farmers in the district as regards the soyabeans and rice crop prices.
Meanwhile, yesterday 16 June 2022, FRA board chairperson Kelvin Hambwezya announced at a press briefing in Lusaka the FRA 2022 crop marketing arrangements.
“Please note that prices being announced are not floor prices but rather FRA prices under the principle of willing seller and willing buyer… 2022 FRA crop prices; white maize 50 kg at K160, soya beans 50 kg at K550 and paddy rice 40 kg at K200,” Mr Hambwezya said.
He said FRA undertook a process of crop price scenario analysis and consulted with some key stakeholders in the agricultural value chain.
This guy only thinks about farmers. There are more consumers than farmers! And they consider the prices to be high enough!
So you want us to operate at a loss. If you want cheap mealie meal start growing your own maize. Last year I was paying four hundred Kwacha per trip to ferry maize from the farm. This year I am being charged six hundred so what is ten Kwacha increase going to benefit me.
Inflation?