POULTRY MANAGEMENT IN THE RAINY SEASON
The rainy season is usually synonymous with an increase in relative humidity and a reduction in temperature; rainfall affects both the quality and quantity of feeding, while wind speed has an impact on the outbreak of diseases.
With the arrival of the rainy season, farmer needs to give a little bit more care and attention towards his crops along with the livestock. As we know, poultry farming is continuously growing as the most profitable agribusiness across the globe including India. However, monsoon comes as a challenging season for poultry farmers which could be very tormenting. As the rainy and cold season brings changes in temperature and weather conditions, it leaves a deep impact to the poultry farm. You need to know that weather conditions play a vital role in poultry farming as well. Hence, as a poultry farmer, it is very important to learn how to operate a poultry farm during rainy seasons.
Poultry birds and poultry production are generally affected by seasonal climatic or weather changes. For instance, in the wet or cold season, chickens eat more feed, drink less water and huddle together to generate heat and keep themselves warm. On the other hand, chickens and other livestock birds consume less feed and drink more water in the hot season or weather in order to cool their body. These changes affect the production of birds, most especially laying birds, as egg production is reduced in extremely cold or hot weather. This reduction in egg production occurs because when there are extreme cold or hot conditions, these birds are stressed, and their ability to withstand diseases or immune system is seriously affected.
It is always better to repair the house before the arrival of the rainy season and to clear the drainage ditch around the chicken house. When it rains, close the doors and windows or let the curtains open to prevent rain from entering the house and prevent the chickens from getting cold or other problems
One should reserve enough dry padding. The thick padding should be turned over and keep the padding dry. The wet agglomerated padding should be cleaned out of the house and reduce the ammonia concentration in the house.
Prevent the feed ingredients from getting wet, and the amount of feed should not be too much. The compound feed in the house should be placed on the platform above the ground to prevent the feed from regaining moisture and mildew in your battery cage for sale.
Under the influence of the rainy season of battery cage for layers, the humidity in the chicken house is increased, the litter is moist, the feed is mildewed, some production units cannot obtain clean drinking water, etc., which may lead to coccidiosis, E. coli outbreak, and elevated ammonia concentration. The risk of mycotoxin poisoning and respiratory disease infection increases.
Birds usually increase their level of feed intake to generate heat and stay warm during the rainy season/winter. However, for a farmer, increasing the level of feed provision raises the cost of production besides wastage of nutrients that are not needed for heat generation. To reduce costs and avoid wastage, energy-rich sources like oil/fat should be added to the diet or the level of other nutrients may be reduced keeping the energy at the same level.
In a free-range system, provide supplementary feeding to the birds to meet their nutrient deficit. Consider providing your birds with warm water periodically during this rainy season to encourage consumption and help them keep warm without using up energy reserved in the process.
With the rain, birds may encounter standing water (mostly in free-range) and end up drinking from the ground leading to parasitic infestation from intestinal worms.
De-wormers administered after every three months help in the management of worms but you should remember the product withdrawal period as specified by the manufacturer.
Poultry house should be designed in such a way that it provides all the comfort required by birds during cold season while considering ventilation as well. In regions where it rains heavily, the floor should be raised with a generous roof overhang, particularly over the entrance.
The raised floor can be a solid platform of the earth to prevent floods. Orientation of a building with respect to wind and sun consequently influence temperature and light on different external surfaces. With better management, your flock will remain healthy and productive throughout the cold season.
Wet litter condition may arise due to overcrowding, diarrhoea and excessive salt in the diet besides seepage from the roof. Wet litter condition should be prevented as it may lead to burnt hock condition, E.coli infection, coccidiosis etc.
Hence proper housing space or stocking density along with proper ventilation should be ensured. Excessive caking of the litter should be prevented as it may lead to abrasions in the extremities and hock joint. Wet litter can be prevented by the frequent stirring of the litter.
Young Egg Leaders discuss the opportunities and challenges of the future
The IEC Young Egg Leaders Programme brings together highly motivated future leaders from egg businesses around the world to support their professional development. In our final article in the series, current YEL’s Michael Griffiths, New Product Development Manager at Oakland Farm Eggs, UK, and Opeyemi Agbato, Executive Director Animal Health and Husbandry at Animal Care, Nigeria, share their views on the future challenges, threats and opportunities the egg industry may face.
What is the biggest untapped opportunity for the egg industry?
Michael: I believe there are lots of untapped opportunities for our industry. On the go and convenience products have witnessed significant growth in recent years as people look for convenience in their day to day lives. Although COVID will have impacted this in the short term, as less people commute to the office, it has also made people re-evaluate their health, and I believe there is a huge opportunity for eggs and egg products to provide a healthy and convenient source of nutrition.
Opeyemi: New research continues to showcase the reasons that eggs should be enjoyed as part of a healthy diet. I believe there are more opportunities for this to be done on a regional level, which would enable producers to showcase the health benefits of eggs based on local populations and demographics.
What are the top business issues on your mind?
Michael: One of the biggest business issues on my mind at the moment is the implications of the move to cage free production in the UK and the future of enriched colonies. These decisions will have a huge impact on egg production businesses in the UK, and I believe it is important that we are able to have open and honest conversations about the environmental and welfare impact of all systems to enable consumers to have the option to make their own informed choices.
Opeyemi: One of the biggest business issues on my mind is how we maintain year-round sales of eggs to avoid large gluts which impact prices. I believe it is important for us to look at new opportunities to reduce fluctuations, whether that be through promotions, exportation or potential preservation techniques, such as freezing, which could be used to support a more consistent price throughout the year.
What are the key threats for the egg industry?
Michael: Avian disease remains a key threat to our industry, particularly Avian Influenza. As we continue to face pressure in the UK to move away from enriched colony production to free range systems this threat becomes even larger, which is often overlooked. The health of our birds continues to remain the top priority for egg producers around the world, and I believe it is important that considerations such as disease threat are taken in to account when decisions made outside of the industry impact our production systems.
Opeyemi: Feed Input price instability and unavailability has been a major threat. Low yield of vital grains such as maize and soy beans compared to industrial demand, driving production costs very high which is transferred to egg prices. This has been due to insecurity in the rural farming areas which has also discouraged investment in mechanization and other efficient farming practices that could improve productivity. Farm lands are underutilized during the planting seasons, leading to scarcity. Another threat to the industry is the misguided perception of the role of eggs on our health. Historic claims around cholesterol continue to circulate in some regions, despite more recent scientific evidence showing that eggs do not negatively impact cholesterol levels. I believe as an industry we all have a role to help promote the value of the eggs, and showcasing the high standards eggs are produced to can aide this.
Dr Opeyemi Agbato is the current PRO of Poultry Association of Nigeria Ogun State
Tackling maize shortage
Insecurity, border closures and restrictions following the COVID-9 pandemic contributed to the challenges maize farmers are facing to get seeds as the planting season kicks in across the country. The situation has raised fears that productivity will decline and threaten food security, as seed shortages are predicted for most staple crops.
Several parts of Africa are facing challenges of producing quality seeds for farmers as a result of the pandemic. Analysts have noted that unless a swift action is taken to facilitate producers’ access to seeds, the disruptions caused by the pandemic would lead to a decrease in agricultural production.
Last month, the Central Bank (CBN), through its Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP), released about 300,000 metric tonnes of maize into the market, to help reduce the prices of the product.
Earlier, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) facilitated waivers for four agro-processing firms to import 262,000 tonnes of maize to bridge the shortfall in production. The National President, Maize Association of Nigeria (MAAN) Bello Abubakar, blamed insecurity in the major maize producing belt of Niger, Kaduna, Katsina, Zamfara and some parts of Kano for the insufficiency of the product in the market. He explained that the planned dry season farming which is first of its kind in the country, timely distribution of inputs to farmers and improved security would significantly enhance production and ensure stability in price.
As part of the bank’s financing framework, the CBN has facilitated the funding of maize farmers and processors through the ABP Commodity Association, Private/Prime Anchors, state governments, Maize Aggregation Scheme (MAS), and the Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme (CACS).
Confirming the release of credit to its members by the apex bank, Abubakar said over 200,000 farmers were planning to produce more than 25 million metric tonnes of maize in the 2020/2021 planting season.
According to him, the credit is disbursed to members along the maize value chain, located in different states of the country.
On the CBN’s gesture, the National President, Federation of Agricultural Commodities Association of Nigeria (FACAN), Dr. Victor Iyama, noted that though the measure was short-term, it would go a long way to ameloriate the situation.
Iyama said since maize was one of the nation’s major grains and efforts should be focused on boosting production through continued support of famers with higher-quality seed at subsidised prices to farmers. Also, that the government should encourage farmers to increase maize cultivated areas across the states.
An Executive Director, Animal Care and the Public Relations Officer, Ogun State Chapter, Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Dr. Opeyemi Agbato, said the allocation and release of maize to key feed millers under the CBN’s Strategic Maize Reserve programme was a much-needed intervention.
His words: “For it, we sincerely applaud their initiative. They made true to their words and pronouncements of release. It was unfortunate that the release coincided with a time when the prices of soy beans seeds (whose by-product a critical source of protein in poultry feed) experienced an astronomical increase mostly due to rapid exportation. Even though there is a dire need for foreign exchange in the country, Soy is insufficient for local use, current exportation is at the detriment of local livestock farmers, particularly poultry farmers. We hope that in the future, more strategic holding and release facilities for maize would be made available in all regions for ease of accessibility and reduction in the cost of transportation.”
With skyrocketing prices of some essential foods, he hoped that the price of subsequent maize release would be further reduced to as low as N135-145,000/ metric tonne (MT) or about 35 per cent lower than prevailing prices to the consumers to force the drop in prices of maize and cost of producing animal feed and food.
The Chief Executive, AFEX, Ayodeji Balogun, said his organisation was providing a roadmap to high-yield growth opportunities in the aggregation, storage, and marketing of maize in Nigeria.
AFEX provides storage warehouses with a warehouse receipt system to enable the market viability of the crops and a fair price share for farmers.
Since Maize remains an indispensable staple role in the food processing and feeds industry, Balogun said the organisation was happy to be associated with the release to aid increased maize production and productivity.
“By facilitating the release of the 300,000MT Maize, leveraging support from credible players in the ecosystem including our team at AFEX, the CBN will offer over 35,000 farmers and agro-processors a channel through which they can trade maize at a subsidised rate, and thereby reduce the adverse effect of the maize price hike, increase local demand, and improve farmers’ livelihoods.
“With maize being a core food basket, the allocation of the commodity to smallholder farmers, prime anchors such as Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Flour Mills, Livestock and Feeds processors, will create a sustainable availability and pricing structure in the market, reducing maize prices and bridging the supply gap and scarcity in the national and local market regions,” he added.
Courtsey: The Nation
OFFER FOR MAIZE ALLOTMENT
PANOG eventually got allocation of 2,200 metric tons maize allocation from the 10,000 metric tons allocated to PAN South West from CBN.
After due deliberation, the Central Executives hereby propose guidelines below as modalities for sharing within our members:
- Payment of 2021 and 2020 (where relevant) annual due by the farmer. Amended annual dues as shown below.
- Zonal Chairman’s approval of the farmer
- Minimum order per allottee of 30tons for ease of logistics (2 or 3 farmers can be encouraged to merge together but payment shall be made by only one farmer and the mergers shall be at the discretion of the farmers)
- Payment for the maize shall be made directly to CBN account with evidence made available to the Zonal Coordinator and the State Secretariat ( This is subject to ongoing discussion with CBN/SWPAN).
- Payment of agreed logistics and subcharges shall be made directly into PANOG’S current account.
- A payment window of not later than 5 days after announcement of maize allotment
- Past activities of member with the association.
Zonal Chairmen should take the above as an invitation for their member’s application.
All applications from zones should be collated and submitted to the state Secretariat through the General Secretary or the Admin Secretary not later than noon of Monday, 22th February while final allocation will be announced from the Central Executives later same Monday
Press Release
Poultry farmers Ijebu Zone, on egg prices.
All of us the executives of PANOG IJEBU ZONE as farmers are as troubled by the circumstances around us as you the members.
We are currently facing intense threat that might force farms to go underground, as a result of the serious challenges confronting our industry.
The rising cost of poultry feeds which cut across all the species and ages is one of the factors responsible.
Irregular prices and underpricing of our products is also a very big factor.
During the last festive season, large number of the farmers have closed-shops, while those still operating are either struggling to remain in business at zero profit or incurring huge debts to stay afloat.
As an association with a vision, the executives at the Zonal, State and South-West level held a press conference to appeal and send an SOS to the Federal Government of Nigeria to save the poultry industry from imminent collapse.
As we all wait for the outcome of the engagement between the state executive, SouthWest and the FG before trying ‘other options’, the Chairman and other executives of the zone are working round to clock to provide a solution to these problems.
“The major happening is that farmers have been selling below their cost price due to individualistic behaviour of some of our farmers. To further minimise our losses the Executives have directed all farmers to have a *minimum* selling price of a crate of egg to be *₦1200*
Also on the long and medium-term, the PANOG IJEBU ZONE is happy to inform our members that we are kick-starting our cooperative society which in future will help in terms of feed price regulation, price control, access to cheap and quality feed and raw materials and soon.
Our telephone number :
+234(0)8075444840 – Secretary Ijebu Zone
+234(0)8038826321- PRO Ijebu Zone
Don’t let the muggles get us down… Poultry farming shall rise again.
Thank you for your understanding.
Sincerely,
The Executives.
Poultry Association of Nigeria.
Ogun State.
IJEBU ZONE.
POULTRY ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA. OGUN STATE. IJEBU ZONE.
10, CHRIS’ OGUNBANJO WAY, OPPOSITE COCA-COLA DEPOT, IJARI. IJEBU-ODE.*
Ogun state.
Nigeria.
Press Release
IMMINENT COLLAPSE OF POULTRY INDUSTRY: OVER 5MILLION JOBS THREATENED – SAVE OUR SOUL
The Poultry Industry in the South West Geo-Political Zone is over 6 decades growing consistently and steadily to a population of 30million a number representing more than 60% of the National Poultry Population. In investment, this sector is worth over N2 Trillion Naira. In job creation, it employs over 10 million people, directly and indirectly, using its wide value chain from farm to field. It is worthy of note that this sector is almost 100% private driven.
However, if urgent attention is not given to the lingering crisis of Grains especially maize and Soya, we fear that an industry with such enviable statistics may suffer a total collapse.
About July 2020, the price of maize due to inadequate supply against the huge demand by the Poultry Sector and other users rose from a price of 105000 – 165000. In the midst of this hike in price, the Central Bank of Nigeria announced a ban on Forex for the importation of maize which further drove the price too as high as 185000/TON.
Principal among the reasons for the BAN was to encourage local production. Currently, the jobs of maize and soya beans growers are not in any way threatened because they cannot even meet the huge local demand for the products. Yet the acute scarcity and astronomical prices of soya beans and maize threaten additional five million poultry jobs in the short term except Your Excellency intervenes.
After much public outcry by the Poultry farmers, a concession was given to some Poultry Stakeholders to import 262000MT. This had long been done and in the onset of harvest which was November 2020, it was obvious that our local production was grossly inadequate to support the Poultry Industry through 2021 given the following reasons:
- Shortfall in Rainfall and still being largely dependent on rain fed agriculture
- Insecurity and Herdsmen Challenges which implied that most farmers did not plant
- Higher demand for Maize in the Poultry Sector due to the Broiler Anchor Borrower Program of the FGN through CBN/NIRSAL
- Export Activities some illegal
As at today, Maize is 210,000/MT in most states of the South West, Soya Meal 240000/MT. Due to the fact that these two items form about 75-78 % of an average poultry ration, the price of poultry feed has continuously been on the increase from about 2750 -3000 in April 2020 to 4850-5300 today. In December, most farmers from small to large were unable to sell their broiler because the cost of production was even higher than what an average Nigerian can afford. Presently, egg is going out of the reach of an average family with ideal price at 1300 per crate but the farm gate price is still at 1000-1100 a price that will force farmers to close down.
OUR PRAYERS
- The Government to approve urgent importation of Animal Feed Grade of Maize to Sustain the over 50million layers, 100million broilers, 1million breeders, and other classes of poultry until the next harvest season.
- In the interim, Government to enforce a ban on export of Soya both seed and the Processed Meal.
- The Governors in the Southwest to put as much efforts to the cultivation of maize as they have done with rice.
- A strong Collaboration between Maize Farmers Association of Nigeria, Soya Farmers Association of Nigeria and PAN to determine the body’s actual yearly need and assessing the later Yield Vis a Vis her need for proper planning.
- To save the current 10million jobs in the Poultry Value Chain of the Nigerian Economy.
Yours faithfully,
For: Poultry Association of Nigeria, South West
Dr. Olalekan Odunsi
General Secretary
Food crisis: Tough times ahead —Asenuga, Poultry Farmers Association President
…Importation of key products needed to address scarcity
…Says poultry industry shrank by 25 percent
By Charles Kumolu, Deputy Editor
Managing Director of Agri Supply Ltd and Chairman of Poultry Association of Nigeria, Ogun State chapter, Mr. Idowu Asenuga, in this interview, demands urgent action on food insecurity in Nigeria, saying 2021 may be dire for the nation in terms of food availability.
He also suggests measures to address the shortage of grains occasioned by the alarming insecurity in the North. Asenuga, who has spent more than two decades in agribusiness, explains how the poultry industry is badly impacted by the crisis.
Many reports, including those from National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, have said that an acute food crisis is imminent in Nigeria. Based on what you do, you should have a lot of information on this. How bad is the situation?
My only source of income is agribusiness and I will say that Nigeria is a country that has refused to be focused. The primary assignment of a government is to provide for its people. The World Bank has predicted crises in some developing countries and one of the countries is Nigeria. If we are serious, we should know that food is among the things that cause a crisis. When there is a food crisis, people get agitated, become violent and restless.
For instance, during the #EndSARS protests, people didn’t go to break banks. They went to break warehouses where palliatives were kept. And that showed how hungry people are in Nigeria. We have a population of over two million people and the food production growth rate is not even as high as the population. Our population is growing at about three percent annually. What is the growth rate of the agribusiness sector? Some of the foods are even exported to neighboring African countries. Nigeria needs to focus on food production aggressively.
I have tried maize production at the commercial level and what I realised is that productivity is a function of technological application. For you to be productive, you need to deploy technology. I often tell people that what made me excited as a young man whenever I went to my father’s farm was watching his egg graders.
The function of the egg grader is standardization. But today, I have a larger farm but there is no egg grader. And it cuts across. At the end of the day, consumers are being cheated because you are selling a product to them that you can’t quantify. No standard and technology to drive productivity in the agribusiness sector.
Productivity
We are just going backward. In Apoje, Ijebu-Ugbo, Awolowo built big farms more than 50 years ago, but the place is moribund. We can’t even maintain them. We just need to focus on productivity. A lot of people complain of lack of capital, but agriculture is not only about capital. The number one problem apart from insecurity is capacity.
The institutes of agriculture all over the country are not funded and it is obvious the federal government cannot fund agricultural research. Nothing is even going on in the universities of agriculture. Without capacity, we can’t achieve anything.
Therefore, if you throw money at a problem, your money, at best, will just disappear. Capacity building can only be done by the private sector. Even private universities do not take agriculture seriously. That tells how seriously the private sector takes agriculture in Nigeria. We need to attract youths to agriculture, but they will never come because the sector is unproductive. Technology and innovation are needed to transform agribusiness in Nigeria. That is the only way we can bring about productivity in the sector.
The problem at hand, which is food insecurity, has been attributed to insecurity, especially in northern Nigeria. As an authority in agribusiness sector, to what extent has the crisis affected food production?
My predecessor gave me a brief about the alarming nature of insecurity in northern Nigeria where farmers are expected to pay a bribe to plant their crops. And when they want to harvest, they are expected to pay a bribe to be given security to go and harvest. The only clear consequence of that is a food crisis.
When you disrupt a normal system by introducing bottlenecks, there will be a crisis. And the crisis, of course, is already affecting the poultry sector where I operate. Today, the cost of soya grain is N220, 000. The cost of grain/maize is about N170, 000. What that does is that it creates ripple effects because agribusiness is a value chain. It cuts across activities from the field up until the point where the consumer comes in. When a section of the value chain is disrupted, it affects the end consumer.
COVID-19
During COVID-19 lockdown, the purchasing power of the average Nigerian was eroded by inflation and devaluation. Inflation at 15 percent, which is primarily driven by food index prices and devaluation of the naira by almost 40 per cent affected the system.
When you add all these, an average Nigerian, if you look at the problem from an international perspective, is poorer than he has ever been in the last 40 years. Even if the food was available at the previous price, they can’t afford it. It is even made worse by food prices which have gone beyond the purchasing power of an average Nigerian. Definitely, there would be a food crisis. It is imminent, it is staring us in the face and the way it is looking, it is almost unavoidable.
That is the reality on the ground. In my sector, a bag of feed is almost N5, 000 per 25kg. Farmers are closing down their farms. I had a meeting with a member of my association who has been in the business for a while and he was telling me that he wants to leave the business. This is a young man of about 40 years. My industry has shrunk to about 25 percent. People are leaving the business. Some want to sell their birds but consumers cannot even afford them. The price of a spent layer is going for about N1, 500 and the people maximising the returns are the market women. I am wondering why a spent bird should be N1, 500.
The consumer is not going to get it at that price anyway. The crisis is real. Farmers are not allowed to plant their crops in the North. Farmers are closing their livestock business in the South. At the end of the day, I don’t even know what 2021 will look like. A lot of people are saying 2020 is terrible but I am saying that 2020 is just the tip of the ice bag. 2021 is really going to be terrible in terms of food production.
Are you saying it is not only insecurity in the North that is driving the food crisis?
The point I am making is that when you disrupt the value chain of grain production in the North due to insecurity, production has gone down because people can’t go to farms. If production goes down, it means more people are chasing few goods. What happens is that demand and supply will come set in and prices will go up.
When the price of grain goes up, it affects feed production for livestock. And when the price of feed production gets to a particular level, the farmer cannot pass that burden to the consumer. When there is consumer resistance, the option available to the farmer is to shut down. And this will lead to unemployment and less purchasing power. When people are laid off, there will not be enough money to buy the available few goods.
Is there a quick fix since Nigerians are already bearing the brunt?
The only quick fix to the food crisis is importation. Unfortunately, circumstances in the country make that impossible. At the moment, I want to import technology but my bankers told me I can’t get forex. They said they can only give me naira.
They said if I want to use my naira to buy the goods, they can give me but they can’t give me forex. They said I should search for forex myself. Even as a business owner, you can’t import because forex is not available.
The only available option is the black market. But you can’t buy from the black market and pay into your domiciliary account. I have borrowed money from a bank, which I am paying interest on but I can’t even buy forex to bring in my equipment. The building for the equipment is almost ready on my farm but the equipment is stranded in Europe.
But government has a lot of policies that seek to assist local farmers…
My association is writing a letter to the President, Senate President, Speaker of House of Representatives, governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and Minister of Agriculture, just to raise the alarm that we need to save the poultry sector.
If the chickens are gone, the grain producer cannot even find anywhere to sell his grain. Government needs to do something to save the poultry sector. We have been shouting in the last three weeks for the sector to be saved but no one seems to be listening. We haven’t even seen a statement from government to show that they are actually aware of the situation. That is why we decided to write to them personally to see if we can get a different outcome.
The only quick solution is to import and government needs to provide the forex needed for importation. However, it is suicidal to be importing food for more than 200 million people. What I am suggesting is that since there is a crisis in the North, the South-West governors can talk to poultry farmers to see how we can grow grains in the South-West.
Maize can grow in Ogun State, Oyo State, Ekiti State, Osun State and Ondo State. Understandably, Lagos does not have land. This is an opportunity for our governors to focus on agriculture, especially grain production.
A copy of our letter will be dispatched to Ogun State governor. The long term solution is to ensure that every region produces food so that if there is a crisis in a particular region, the whole country won’t go down. For example, the Netherlands is one of the largest food exporters in the world, but Niger State is bigger than Netherland in landmass. Another option we have is to innovate by deploying technology to optimise our productivity. I tell my members that if they step up their productivity, even if the feed is N5, 000 per bag, they can still make profit. We just need to optimise.
Should the importation you are proposing cover only products that are already threatened?
The way to go about it is to look at each of the products and their impacts. For instance, maize is an industrial product that is used in making many products. It is also used for human consumption and animal consumption. Maize is critical. A product like soya is critical because it is for human and animal consumption. For a product like cassava, you don’t need to import it.
There is no crisis in the South where cassava is grown, so producers should be encouraged to cultivate more. The reality about maize is that the insecurity from the source of production is not something government can solve in nine months.
The only option in such a situation that affects a staple product like maize is to import. Government should provide the forex for import and it should not be given to a few companies. If my opinion is going to count, I would like them to prioritise maize and soya because that is impacting us very seriously in our industry.