Increase in staple food prices may spark protests across the country

By Patrick Githinji

Worries over staple food prices are triggering alarm among Kenyans.

According to economists, staple food prices are slowly rising and may spark protest across the country, as was the case in 2008.

"The rise is being facilitated by a supply disruption," Kwame Owino the Chief Executive of Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) told the Standard.

Owino also added that poor weather witnessed in the country last year would negatively affect food prices.

He said, "The price increase would affect maize, sugar, wheat and rice since as a country, we are not sufficient".

In the global market, many countries recorded poor harvest and they have restricted exports.

A report released by the United Nations, a body in charge of global food policy Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) last week said the food price index on cost of wheat, corn, rice, oilseeds, dairy products, sugar and meat had jumped to a record high in December, surpassing the peak of the 2007-08 food crisis.

The economist warns that staple food prices will begin to rise any time.

"Food shortage has not occurred yet since farmers in Rift Valley recorded bumper harvest, but the infrastructure to link the supply to the market is what has led to food shortage," Owino maintains.

He said Kenya is more vulnerable to small shockers compared to neighboring countries.

FAO typically uses the widespread presence of food riots to define a food crisis and sees the absence of protests as a positive signal, despite the fact that its food price index has recently reached a record high exceeding that of the crisis three years ago. According to Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), consumer price index (CPI) increased by 1.41 per cent from 107.86 in November last year to 109.38 last month.

"The Food and Non Alcoholic drinks index went up by 1.76 per cent between the month of November and December last year," KNBS reported.

Drinks index

The rise was attributed to cost increase on a number of food products including tomatoes, beef, milk, and cooking fat whose retail prices went up by 9.6 per cent, 1.6 per cent, 1.5 per cent and 2.4 per cent respectively.

For instance, a kilogramme of beef with bone retailed at an average price of Sh258 last month compared to Sh254 in November.

Already, consumers are facing a tough time with prices of cooking gas rising everyday. The commodity is now trading at Sh2,750 for 13kg gas cylinder and Sh1,200 for a 6kg gas cylinder.

Cooking gas volatile prices can be attributed to gas shortage due to piracy in the East African coast, a fact that made LPG suppliers reluctant to send own ships to Kenya.

Owino said the Price Control Bill may not solve the problem, but maintained that it is a misunderstanding of fundamentals of economics.

He advised the state to get out of a cocoon that drought means hunger and build storage facilities as well as infrastructure.