By Tosin Olatokunbo
Within two months, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN has released 350,000 metric tonnes of maize into the Nigerian market, as part of the efforts to crash the prices and ease the scarcity of the commodity in the country.
In January, the apex bank released 300,000 metric tons and has now added 50,000 metric tons, even though analysts insist that the intervention will not serve much purpose.
“The current shortfall in the quantity of maize available in the market, that CBN is working on mitigating, is attributed to activities of banditry, drought in some parts of the country last year, activities of hoarders and middlemen as well as insecurity around the major maize producing belt of Niger, Kaduna, Katsina, Zamfara and part of Kano states,” the CBN said in a statement.
Over 11 million tons of maize is consumed annually in the country while barely 7 million tons are produced locally, leaving the shortfall to be imported. But the CBN has placed a ban on importation of maize to encourage local production, leading to scarcity. The 2020 corona virus pandemic lock down has made things worse because farmers could not plant for the better part of the season.
As the scarcity bites harder, some livestock producers had recently appealed to the federal government to intervene over the rising cost of maize which has also led to the increase in the prices of poultry products, including eggs and chickens. At least, over 50 per cent of national consumption is consumed in the livestock sector.
The CBN said the release was part of efforts to reduce the price of the commodity in the market, adding that the impact of its action is already being felt as the price of maize has crashed from N200, 000.00 per metric tonnes to about N180, 000.00 per metric tonnes.
More price reduction is expected in coming weeks as more of the products flood the markets, the government bank said.
The CBN gives the breakdown of the beneficiaries to include Premier Flour Mills, Crown – Olam, Grand Cereals, Animal Care, Amobyn and Hybrid Feeds. Others include Zartech, Wacot, Sayeed Farms, Pandagri Novum and Premium Farms as well as the South West, South-South, North West and North Central chapters of the Poultry Association of Nigeria, PAN.
According to the apex bank, the benefiting companies represent the major players in the poultry value chain in the country, noting that the 50,000 metric tonnes of Maize will minimize the activities of intermediaries (middlemen) in the Nigerian maize market.
