Government To Allow Millers To Export 20% Of Mealie Meal

Government has accepted the proposal by the Millers Association of Zambia to allow millers with their own maize to export 20 percent of their mealie meal.

Agriculture Minister Michael Katambo said that the move is in line with the policy directive that the government will only be dealing with millers who buy their own maize from farmers.

Speaking during a press briefing in Lusaka yesterday, Mr. Katambo reminded millers eyeing strategic grain reserves held by the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) that the stored commodity is meant for relief purposes only.

He disclosed that so far, export permits for maize and mealie meal of up to 100 Thousand metric tonnes have been issued under the Early Maize Export Programme which ran between June 2020 and February 2021.

Mr. Katambo stressed that maize and mealie meal exports in Zambia are currently regulated, as the primary focus of government is to ensure the country is food secure.

The Agriculture Minister noted that Zambia is food-secure and has maize stocks to last up to end of October 2021.

Mr. Katambo also assured that mealie meal prices in the country will remain stable and are expected to start reducing towards the end of April.

And Millers Association of Zambia President Andrew Chintala has expressed gratitude to government for accepting the association’s proposal to allow millers with their own maize to export 20 percent.

Mr. Chintala described the mealie meal export programme as a win-win initiative that will allow millers to continue accessing maize on the market.

This article originally appeared on Lusaka Times