Tanzania's National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) is preparing to begin buying maize from farmers in Njombe Region at Sh450 per kilogramme (about $0.18/kg), but farmers and local leaders are calling for a higher price as rising production costs squeeze farm incomes.
NFRA announced that procurement is expected to begin in the week of September 14, with purchasing centres at Amani, Shaurimoyo, Mlangali and Ludewa. The intervention is intended to give farmers a reliable market for their harvest while helping rebuild the country's strategic grain reserves.
The procurement comes after a difficult marketing season for maize producers. Tanzania experienced a large volume of grain entering markets at the same time, putting downward pressure on prices in several producing regions. The government had earlier announced plans to purchase more than 1.2 million tonnes of cereals during the 2026/27 financial year, with maize making up the bulk of the purchases.
For farmers in Njombe, however, the guaranteed market does not necessarily resolve the underlying profitability problem.
Ludewa District welcomed the NFRA intervention but urged the agency to increase its buying price, arguing that production costs have escalated. Other local officials have also been working to attract private companies to buy directly from farmers, with the aim of increasing competition and giving producers more options beyond government procurement.
The issue is particularly important for farmers who borrowed money to purchase inputs. Some farmers had taken loans based on expectations about maize prices, meaning NFRA purchases could help them repay outstanding debts and reduce the financial pressure created by weak market prices.
The current debate follows months of price pressure in Tanzania's maize-producing regions. In June, NFRA said it planned to procure more than one million tonnes of grain after maize prices fell sharply following a bumper harvest. Farmers in several regions are reportedly selling maize at prices that they said were difficult to reconcile with the cost of fertiliser, seed and other inputs.
The government's procurement programme is therefore serving two purposes: providing farmers with a buyer during a period of weak prices and adding grain to national reserves. But the Njombe debate highlights the challenge of setting a procurement price that protects farmers without losing sight of fiscal costs and broader market conditions.
Local authorities are also pushing for more buyers to enter the market. Greater participation from private traders and processors could reduce farmers' dependence on a single buyer and create competition around farm-gate prices.
For Tanzania, the issue extends beyond this year's maize harvest. A stronger maize market will require farmers to have access to storage, finance and reliable buyers so they are not forced to sell immediately after harvest when prices are weakest.
NBF Insight
NFRA's intervention gives Tanzania's maize farmers something they urgently need: a market. But a guaranteed buyer only becomes meaningful when the price also reflects the economics of production. The bigger opportunity is to build a maize market where government procurement provides a floor, while private buyers, storage and processing create enough competition for farmers to earn sustainably beyond the harvest season.
