Luweero millers stuck with maize flour as sales dwindle

Luweero, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Several grain millers in Luweero town are stuck with tons of maize flour and animal feeds as sales dwindle in the middle of lockdowns undertaken to contain the spread of coronavirus disease-COVID-19.

The sales fell drastically from the time president Yoweri Museveni directed all non-essential businesses to close to encourage Ugandans to stay home and limit person to person contact. Although food stores and factories including grain millers remained operational in order to ensure that the people access what to eat, many of them are making losses with little or no sales.

Ruth Namawejje, the Manager of Africa Grain Millers in Luweero town says that before the COVID-19 pandemic, they used to sell more than 10 tons of maize flour every day. Today, the they only sell a ton a day. They equally used to sell a ton of feeds to poultry farmers every day, but the feed purchases have also stopped a result of which they have been forced to scale down.

Dauda Kigwe, a staff at Lubega Grain Millers in Luweero town says that they are currently stuck with over 20 tons of maize flour which they had processed before the lockdown and they failed to sale it. Kigwe says that currently they can only sale less than 150 kilograms of maize flour per day which is too small.

Henry Mugwanya, the Manager of Kyakuwa Grain Millers says that he used to sale at least eight tons per day but in recent days he goes without a single order. Mugwanya says that before the lockdown he had stocked over 150,000 kilograms of maize which is still in store.

He adds that they thought that Task Forces on COVID may buy some maize flour from them but these have not placed any order.

The prices of maize flour registered a slight increase of 100 shillings per kilogram. The kilogram of maize is sold at 1800-2000 Shillings from 1700-1900 before the lockdown.

Residents and local leaders say the demand for maize flour is available but there is decline in purchasing power following the closure of businesses. Patrick Ssenfuma, a resident of Kavule zone says that he used to sell old clothes in market to get money to buy maize flour but this is no longer possible.

Another resident Sarah Tumwesigye says that because of lack of money to buy the maize flour, she has decided to camp at Office of Resident District Commissioner for support.

Flavia Nakitende the Luweero Deputy Speaker asked the government to buy the maize flour from grain millers and donate it to people because there is huge demand for it both in urban and rural areas.

The Luweero Deputy Resident District Commissioner Mariam Kagaiga Mugisha says that due to lack of money to buy from food stores, many families frequent her office everyday asking for food donations. She says that they are overwhelmed with demands and asked the grain millers to donate some to such families as part of Corporate Social Responsibility.

Luweero District has distributed food to over 2000 vulnerable families.

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