MAJOR supermarkets in Bulawayo and Matabeleland North provinces yesterday began selling mealie meal at subsidised prices.

Residents jostled in long queues to buy a 10kg bag of roller meal at $50kg and 20kg bag at $100. Before the Government injected a subsidy to cushion consumers recently the prices of the packages ranged between $100 and $250.

Some customers at OK Supermarket said they had been waiting for hours to get the mealie meal which they had been looking for, for nearly two weeks.

“We have been looking for this subsidised mealie-meal for more than two weeks and now that it is here we will wait for the supermarket to sell it. They told us that 60 tonnes had been brought here by two lorries which are offloading at the back of the shop,” said Ms Nonhlanhla Moyo.

Another woman who preferred anonymity and had two 20 and two 50 kilogramme bags of roller meal said she was lucky to buy the mealie- meal in the morning at the affordable price.

“Mealie-meal is very scarce and people in the rural areas are really suffering. Now that I managed to secure this much, it means I will be able to feed my family back at home,” she said.

Grain Millers’ Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) spokesperson, Mr Garikai Chaunza, declined to comment on the quantities availed to the market, saying only the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development could do so.

“The national total consumption per month is 32 000 tonnes. As of now the Ministry of Finance and Grain Marketing Board (GMB) are the ones who are working hand in hand with millers and I cannot comment on the quantity but the Ministry of Finance can,” said Mr Chaunza.

The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, Mr George Guvamatanga, declined to comment.

On Saturday, Government started rolling out the subsidy programme to all licensed grain millers and has made advance payment for this month as it moves to stabilise mealie-meal prices.