GMAZ starts buying maize from GMB

THE Grain Millers’ Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) has started buying maize from the Grain Marketing Board ahead of the harvesting of 2017-2018 summer crops.

GMAZ buys maize from GMB at a subsidised price of $242 per tonne, while the parastatal buys the same maize at $390 per tonne from farmers.

Apex representative body of the grain milling industry’s acting general manager Mrs Lynette Veremu said the millers were obliged to account for every grain they got from Government at a subsidised price.

“GMAZ has bought in advance $60 million worth of wheat and maize valued at $100 million ahead of this year’s harvesting season and we are grateful to Government which has again entrusted us to this extent,” she said.

Last season, GMAZ bought 800 000 tonnes of maize from GMB valued at $194 million. The bulk of the maize was produced under the Government-initiated Command Agriculture programme.

According to the audit report done by Baker Tilly Chartered Accountants, who were tasked by GMAZ to carry out the audit on its members, who included Blue Ribbon Foods and National Foods, millers adhered to good corporate governance on their allocations.

“We are mindful of our role of providing staple food and at the same time recognising Government’s interventions of affording us subsidised maize at the expense of the fiscus.

“This report has proved that millers have not abused the maize, but have used it to its intended purposes and we are very grateful as it is also going to give confidence on us to the authorities and the general citizens we serve,” she said.

Mrs Veremu said they had already commissioned a similar audit on wheat which they also procured at a subsidised price.

“We are doing this to ensure the national grain supplies are adequately stocked and this is also in line with Section 15 of the Constitution which guarantees food security.

We want also to take this opportunity to assure the nation that despite low and above normal rainfall which some parts of country received, food supply remains stable,” she said.