Mozambique: Food prices fall at Zimpeto wholesale market

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Mozambique: Food prices fall at Zimpeto wholesale market

2:34 CAT | 20 Apr 2020

Photo: O País

The prices of some food products – including potatoes, onions and tomatoes, have fallen at the Zimpeto wholesale market in Maputo.

After neighbouring South Africa closed its borders in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, food products started to become scarce in the Mozambican market, and consequently, prices soared.

Potatoes, for example, rose to 500 meticais per 10-kg bag in Zimpeto wholesale market at the beginning of the current month.

Last week, however, the price dropped to 230 meticais.

Despite this fall in prices, vendors still complained about the lack of customers.

“We (vendors) are maintaining stocks here in the market, but people do not have money or are not coming to the market because of the circulation restrictions imposed by the government,” potato vendor Abílio Dimande says.

Onions have dropped in price too, from 700 meticais to 380 meticais a bag in the last seven days.

Maria Simbine, one of the vendors approached by ‘O País’, explained that the slide was the result of greater supply on the South African market. “Prices could fall even more in the coming days,” she said.

Tomatoes, which peaked at 1100 meticais a box at the beginning of the month, one week after the lockdown was decreed by Pretoria, fell to 650 meticais last week.

“Now we have local tomatoes, mainly from Boane. This has increased supply,” explains Maló Gundane, another Zimpeto vendor.

The strengthening of local production is expected the further depress prices in the coming days.

By Edson Arante

Source: O País