Middlemen, loans keep Busia in perpetual food insecurity

Busia is becoming food-insecure each year as middlemen take advantage of farmers’ vulnerability to buy produce at throwaway prices.

Middlemen are currently flocking the county to buy freshly harvested maize at low prices, raising fears of a food crisis later in the year.

With the meteorological department warning of a prolonged dry spell in most parts of the country, farmers’ woes may be compounded unless efforts are made to curtail the selling of maize harvested after this year’s long rains season.

The extended dry spell may hamper efforts to plant during the short rains season.

A 2kg tin of maize that was retailing at an average of Sh230 in June has unexpectedly dropped to Sh70.

Middlemen are presently all over the county, moving from home to home, haggling the price of freshly harvested maize.

Reports indicate that some are bargaining to buy the product at Sh50 for a 2kg tin.

Farmers who spoke to the Star said they have no option but to play to the tune of the traders as they struggle to get money and acquire other basic necessities at household level.

Some said they have been forced to sell their produce at throwaway prices to raise school fees for third term and clear tuition balances for first and second terms.

A team of farmers from Angurai called for the collapsed farmers' associations to be revived.

Small-scale growers can use these platforms to negotiate for better product prices.

In the absence of organised farmer groups, the growers have been left alone.

A new trend which the growers said is also posing a huge threat to the county’s food security is the acquisition of food by middlemen while still in the garden.

The middlemen, for instance, bid for the price of maize while still in the farm.

On maturity, the maize is harvested while still green and transported to urban centres, where it is roasted and sold.

“Many farmers now have no food in their houses,” a resident of Amagoro town said.

“Why? They sold green maize, misappropriated the money and slid back to where they were.”

Christopher Emukule said some farmers are being forced to sell their maize to repay loans they had acquired to buy fertiliser.

The farmers' woes have been compounded by the fact that the National Cereals and Produce Board has insignificant presence in the county, unlike other regions, such as Rift Valley.

In Angurai, the NCBP centre constructed by Deputy Governor Arthur Odera when he was Teso North MP between 2013 and 2017 has been abandoned.

Odera had envisaged that the investment will bring NCPB services closer to Teso North, where the government entity would buy maize directly from farmers, elbowing out cartels in the sector.

During their inauguration on August 25 at Busia stadium, Odera and Governor Paul Otuoma said food security will be on their focus for Busia to produce a healthy, productive population.

“A hungry population is an unproductive population. Today, we are faced with serious shortage of food to feed our people,” the governor said.

“While the county government may not provide food directly to the citizens, it has a responsibility to provide support services to ensure the people produce enough to feed themselves and earn a living out of their agricultural investment.”

At the time Otuoma and Odera were being sworn in, a 2kg tin of maize was retailing at Sh140.

“Most of our people cannot afford this. Families are starving,” Otuoma said before an optimistic audience.

“To address this, my administration will strengthen producer groups in the agricultural sector and link them to markets and business development service providers to promote agribusiness and exploit local market opportunities.”

ALTERNATIVES

The governor said his administration would strengthen farmer groups to boost production and improve market access.

It would also focus on improving livestock production, a development he expected would expand sources of income in the agricultural sector.

The governor promised to promote livestock breed improvement to improve quality and increase supply, and to support the most vulnerable households with farm inputs and improved crop seeds,

He also vowed to strengthen the capacity of agricultural extension officers in providing extension services and advice to farmers on the best agronomic practices and climate-smart agriculture and other agricultural technologies.

“We intend to improve and entrench irrigation farming to ensure areas with sufficient water catchment like Bunyala and parts of Teso North subcounties have maximum production from the sector to feed the county and country,” Otuoma said.

The governor said at the national level, he would seek the intervention of the national government, National Fisheries Research Institute and create economic stimulus programmes to support aquaculture, cage farming and blue economy projects.

“I will further request for refocusing of mainstream agricultural research institutes, such as Kalro and Kari, to support the production of diversified agricultural products,” Otuoma said.

This with a view to improving seed quality and subsequent increased productivity, he said.