FRA sends more empty bags to Muchinga

THE Food Reserve Agency (FRA) has procured an additional of 262,000 empty grain bags from the suppliers and part of the consignment has been dispatched to Muchinga Province.

FRA Public Relations Coordinator John Chipandwe assured farmers in various satellite deports of Muchinga Province that the agency has dispatched 90 thousand empty grain bags and that more will be dispatched.

Mr Chipandwe said the Agency is aware of the erratic supply of empty grain bags in some satellite deports around the country and working hard to resolve the situation.

He told ZANIS in Lusaka today that the demand for empty grain bags has been as a result of the maize bumper harvest and pegged floor price which attracted farmers to sell their produce to the Agency.

“The Agency is aware of the situation of empty grain bags which is as a result of the bumper harvest and the attractive price being offered by FRA implying that most farmers have opted to sale to the Agency and also the fact that the Agency has continued to buy maize beyond its planned target which is a good thing as the move will guarantee national food security,” he noted.

Mr Chipandwe further assured the farmers not to panic as the Agency will deliver the empty grain bags on a daily basis. “As the Agency continues receiving more empty grain bags from suppliers, it will continue dispatching to the Province for onward distribution to depots,” he said. The Agency received reports of shortages of empty grain bags from some satellite depots across the country.