Weather, poor economy threaten food security

THE delayed start to Zimbabwe’s rainfall season and the prevailing economic challenges will impact on food security in 2019, the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) has said.
The start of the 2018-19 rainfall season has been delayed and rains have been erratic so far.
“This has adversely affected on-farm activities such as land preparation, planting and casual labor opportunities which are below typical levels for this time of the year.
“Other factors that will adversely impact crop and livestock production in 2019 include access to inputs, the presence of Fall Armyworm, other livestock and crop diseases, as well as increasing market uncertainties,” FEWS NET said in its food security outlook for Zimbabwe that was published recently.
“From December, 2018 through March 2019, Crisis food security outcomes are expected to prevail in typical cereal-deficit areas. This will mainly be due to depleted own-produced food stocks, constrained livelihoods, as well as high food prices,” the network said.
FEWS NET said “stressed outcomes” will be expected in the northern and other surplus production areas.
“Due to the late start of rains and planting, the 2019 harvest is likely to be delayed. As a result, Crisis outcomes are expected to continue into April and May in typical cereal-deficit areas,” the report said.
The network says economic challenges are expected to continue during the outlook period and will have direct and indirect impacts on livelihoods and food security.
“Shortages of foreign currency on formal markets will remain as one of the main drivers of the parallel market for foreign currency, despite some government measures to curb it.
“Shortages of most basic food commodities like cooking oil, sugar, wheat flour, and bread on the formal markets began in October and continue, especially in remote areas,” said FEWS NET.
The network expects the country’s maize self-sufficiency to be around 77 percent. This is attributed to above-average annual national supplies following above-average carryover stocks and average production form the 2017-18 production season.
The Grain Marketing Board is reported to be holding 1,18 million metric tonnes of maize and 136 000 metric tonnes of small grain stocks.
Meanwhile, there have been less than adequate supplies of bread around the country, with shops and bakeries now routinely running out of stocks very early in the morning.
This comes as the country has been experiencing shortages of foreign currency, which is needed to import wheat.
The country imports wheat to augment the local production of the cereal which alone does not make good bread. Bread manufactured by local bakers contains 50 percent hard wheat, which is imported.
newsdesk@fingaz.co.