Malawi fails to meet demand for wheat

 Malawi has continued to fail to meet market demand for wheat, with output averaging 0.5 percent of the estimated annual requirement of about 200 000 metric tonnes between 2005 and 2022.

Malawi Agricultural Policy Advancement and Transformation Agenda (Mwapata) Institute data shows that during the period, wheat output has averaged 0.87 tonnes per hectare despite a potential yield of 3.5 tonnes per hectare.

In its assessment of the potential for scaling up Malawi’s wheat production for domestic consumption and export, Mwapata Institute’s Anderson Gondwe and Joyce Minofu argue that increasing wheat output will fail unless challenges are addressed.

Some of the challenges include reliance on rain-fed production, limited access to improved varieties of wheat, inadequate fertiliser, lack of capacity building in best agronomic practices and lack of access to existing lucrative markets.

Reads the assessment in part: “There has been renewed policy emphasis by the government to transform Malawian agriculture through mega farms.

“Improving efficiency, productivity and coordination along the value chain for wheat and wheat products has been identified as a key potential source of economic growth.”

The assessment further said the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict presents opportunities for scaling up wheat production following supply disruptions and subsequent price increases on the global market.

This is happening at a time the country depends almost entirely on imports mostly from Russia and Ukraine to meet the local demand for wheat, with data showing that in 2020 alone, imports from Russia amounted to $27 million (about K28 billion), representing about 900 000MT.

Meanwhile, wheat demand is likely to rise three to six percent annually largely driven by growth in population, the economy and urbanisation, according to data.

Malawi has three main active wheat processors, namely Bakhresa Grain and Milling Company and HMS Foods Grain Limited in Blantyre and Capital Foods Limited in Lilongwe.

Mwapata said the three companies have the capacity to process about 1 000MT of wheat per day.

Speaking in an interview yesterday, agriculture policy expert Tamani Nkhono Mvula said said looking at wheat’s potential, there is need for government to introduce incentives in the sector and help create markets.

He said: “We used to produce a lot of wheat in Malawi and it still can grow in much of Shire Highlands and most parts of Northern Region.

“One of the biggest challenges is that there used to be good off-takers and government used to provide incentives. Now, the market is small because local producers are competing with imported wheat produced cheaply.”