April 26, 2013

Zimbabwe grain reserves suffer significant decline

Zimbabwe's grain reserves are at a critical low and may suffer further as new harvests are affected by erratic rainfall, said the African Development Bank (AfDB).

The local agricultural sector has been severely affected after the government's takeover of farms. Currently, it has to import grains from Zambia and Malawi, countries to which it used to export to.

According to the AfDB, the strategic reserves had become so depleted that commercial millers had been stopped from buying supplies from the state.

The organisation has noted that the shortage of corn had raised prices of the crop.

The nation had 92,000 tonnes in storage, the bank said in its latest economic bulletin. However, imports of another 150,000 tonnes are needed to meet consumer demand before the new harvest comes to the market.

In one province, three-quarters of planted corn was written off after a prolonged dry spell, while other areas reported excessive rain.