IFPRI Malawi Monthly Maize Market Report: June 2021

The Monthly Maize Market Report was developed by researchers at IFPRI Malawi with the goal of providing clear and accurate information on the variation of maize prices in selected markets throughout Malawi. The reports are intended as a resource for those interested in maize markets in Malawi, namely producers, traders, consumers, or other agricultural stakeholders.

Highlights

• Retail maize prices increased by 1 percent in June 2021.

• No ADMARC purchases were reported in the markets monitored by IFPRI.

• Fewer than 10% of farmers who sold maize in June received a price equal to or greater than the MFG price.

• Retail prices in Malawi remain lower than in selected markets in eastern Africa and on SAFEX.

Prices Increased by 1 percent in June

Only few traders reported trading ‘old’ maize (harvested in 2020) by the end of April 2021. All prices in this report are therefore for the ‘new’ maize harvested in 2021.

Average retail prices increased by 1 percent in June 2021.

However, prices in some markets, especially in the North, decreased due to a late harvest compared to the Center and the South.

The monthly average retail maize price in June 2021 was MWK 132/kg. This is about 5 percent lower than last month, 24 percent lower than in June 2020, and 12 percent lower than the government-mandated minimum farm gate (MFG) price.

Prices are Higher in the South

Retail maize prices were highest and steadily increasing in the South than in the Center and the North (Figure 1).

Prices in the North were higher than in the Center in the first three weeks of June, thereafter, leveled with prices in the Center.

Source: International Food Policy Research Institute