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Cereal Millers Association

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Eastern Flour Mills LtdProudly associates with

And wishes them a happy 20th AnniversaryAnd fruitful years ahead

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Buffalo Millers Limited Congratulates

CMA on your 20th Anniversary

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By Prof Hamadi Iddi Boga, Phd, CBS, Principal Secretary, State Department for Crop and Agricultural Research

A moment to acknowledge millers’ association for leading by example

Why the Agriculture Ministry will continue supporting CMA

It is with great pleasure that I congrat-ulate the Cereal Millers Association (CMA) on their 20th anniversary. The

association is one of the largest institu-tions undertaking the trading and pro-cessing function in the maize and wheat value chains in Kenya.

The cereal sub-sector is key in agri-culture, with a potential to contribute significantly to the national objective of achieving food and nutrition security, improving farmer and local community incomes, lowering the cost of food, and increasing employment, particularly for women and youths.

These priorities are well articulated in the 10-year Agricultural Sector Trans-formation and Growth Strategy (ASTGS) 2019-2029. Indeed, CMA has contribut-ed directly towards increasing agricul-tural output and value addition of pro-duce as outlined in ASTGS.

The association has further been in-strumental in contributing to the gov-ernment agenda of 100 percent Food and Nutrition Security by 2022.

Furthermore, it is anticipated that the implementation of the Warehouse Receipt System Act 2019, where the Warehouse Receipting Council will op-erationalise a structured form of trading of grains and through which millers will access the commodities with ease, qual-ity and quantity will be assured as well

as the enforcement of standards.The Government also takes note

of the central role the Association plays in making available safe and affordable food to over 10 million and 30 million consumers of maize and wheat products respectively.

Moreover, to ensure products of-fered to the consumers are healthy, millers have invested in testing for aflatoxins and members have moved to proficiency testing where results are verified by a third party.

To provide nutritious food, CMA members have maintained a forti-fication programme for flour, which was initiated for the first time in 2010.

Today marks a special day in the life of Cereal Millers Association (CMA): Its 20th anniversary.

CMA is a partner of my Ministry in deliv-ering on two of the Big 4 Agenda, name-ly Manufacturing and Food Security. I cherish this close collaboration, given its boost to both manufacturing and trade, hence creating employment to Kenyans.

Through value addition, CMA feeds more than 10 million consumers of maize meal and over 30 million of wheat prod-ucts’ consumers. The value addition has created forward and backward linkages in the cereals sector, thereby contributing to direct and indirect employment to many Kenyans.

CMA significantly helps in reducing the perennial post-harvest loses of cere-als for lack of market for farm produce. The Association is indeed a platform through which farmers, both small and big, can place their maize and wheat on the plates of Kenyans.

I am informed that CMA has introduced self-regulation and that its members are required to strictly screen and test maize for aflatoxins. This is commendable. Oth-er sector associations should emulate the example set by CMA. Self-regulation is the way to go. It avoids unnecessary con-flicts with authorities.

I also note that CMA has set up a global code of manufacturing practice which all members have to adhere to. Those who do not are denied membership. This is a

good model. I urge and encourage oth-er sector manufacturing associations to follow the same. Strict adherence to good manufacturing practices fosters global competitiveness. Congratula-tions to CMA for leading by example.

Kenya is currently experiencing chal-lenging times due to Covid-19. Many people have lost their livelihoods. Put-ting food on the table is a challenge to many. I must, therefore, thank CMA for its contribution in stabilising prices of staple foods. The Association has made sure that prices have not soared and has contained the vice of hoarding.

All of us must work together to mini-mise the risk of Covid-19 in our country and grow the economy.

STAY SAFE.

Remarks by Betty C. Maina, CBS, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade and Enterprise Development

The Association has been partnering with the government for several years in importation of maize to avert food shortage during drought. In addition to buying maize grains, the association members have also supported the local wheat farmers for over 20 years by buy-ing locally produced wheat grain at pre-mium prices compared to international prices.

CMA members also assist in the colla-tion of maize and wheat data that feeds into overall information for the food bal-ance sheet to inform the government on matters concerning food security.

The achievement over the years has been attributed to, among others, work-ing with different government regulato-ry bodies and other industry stakehold-ers towards an efficient and transparent grain milling industry in Kenya.

The industry has also observed strict discipline, observing all rules and regu-lations prescribed by the government. This has resulted in growth and strate-gic positioning of the milling industry.

Notably, CMA has initiated a strict code of conduct for her members. This has been instrumental in maintaining high milling standards and ethics.

Despite the challenges, its members have faced, the Association has contin-ued to thrive through cooperation and support from the government, other collaborators and business partners.

I reiterate the Ministry’s commitment to creating an enabling environment for CMA to continue trading and process-ing of cereals in the country.

It is a pleasure to connect with our more than 30 million consumers. Thank you for taking time to cele-

brate with us on our 20th Anniversary. Together with the Cereal Millers

Association (CMA) management com-mittee, our secretariat and dedicated members and partners, I welcome everyone today to journey with us into a future of food sufficiency. We are convinced that we can and will do more to support the government in its

efforts to achieve the BIG 4 Agenda. Our emphasis is always anchored

on the importance of having a strong culture of truth and transparency that is deeply embedded in our everyday quest for a growing economy.

This too shall pass COVID-19 has adversely affected not only the grain milling industry but also other sectors of the economy. At Cereal Millers Association, we recognise the challenges that this global pandemic has brought to our economy.

Amidst the crisis, most companies have had to alter their operations in an attempt to adapt to the present circum-stances. However, I believe that we are coming out of the downturn stronger than ever before with a resolve to re-structure our organisations. This will also help position the CMA on a pedes-tal of continued execution of our strat-egy in the coming years. Moreover, we applaud the government for working together with stakeholders in ensuring several safety measures are in place to mitigate the spread of this deadly virus.

Our strategy is simple Liberalisation of the grain market has created a conducive environment for business growth in this country. This has allowed different industry players in the entire value chain to thrive in an open and free economic structure that promote their businesses.

The Cereal Millers Association has managed to build the credibility of its members by effectively strengthening its core mandate and their business-es. We have closely worked with the Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade and Enterprise Development to address concerns raised by the industry that are deemed critical in protecting and pro-moting competitiveness of our locally manufactured flour and flour products in the region. This has also meant seek-ing government interventions to ad-dress the influx of imported flour into a market that is already saturated.

Most importantly also is the role that the Ministry of Finance has played to specifically contribute significantly towards the growth of the industry by implementing tax policies that have

helped in the development of various businesses and investments in the mill-ing industry.

Our expectation into the future Another exciting trend that is emerging is the increased interest in new milling technologies. The milling industry has taken steps towards digitalisation and modernised technology to increase employee productivity, accelerate company growth and secure existence into the future. Smart production in flour mills will enable millers to ade-quately respond to market demands faster and reduce on product wastage and financial losses. The emergence of new farming practices by producers on the one side and change in consumer demand patterns on the other remain to be the most important drivers for growth.

On behalf of the entire Cereal Millers Association family, once again, I wish to recognise our founding members, the past CMA chairmen and the cur-rent management committee for their leadership, the CMA Secretariat, our

members and partners for their com-mitment to the industry and ultimately our consumers for their contribution in making the CMA be what it is today.

We will strive to do good, act better, and do what is best for the society.

A look into the future of the food industryBy MOHAMED ISLAMChairman, CMA

Our emphasis is always anchored on

the importance of having a strong culture of truth and transparency that is deeply embedded in our everyday quest for a growing economy”

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governance and food safety training to ensure compli-ance with global manufacturing practices.

Our vision at CMA is to provide safe, affordable and ad-equate food. To achieve this objective, our members must adhere to a rigorous code of conduct where they are vet-ted and audited by a team of external technical experts on a regular basis. Apart from investing heavily in imple-menting quality control systems and training their quality assurance personnel, members are also working towards the accreditation of their in-house laboratories.

One of the biggest challenges faced by CMA relates to aflatoxins. To mitigate this, CMA has emphasised on com-pany-driven self-regulating mechanisms, with emphasis on the use of correct protocols and data collection. The results have been promising.

With the growing awareness and demand for nutritious products, members have diversified their product ranges to include specialised foods, including fortified, blended and gluten-free, among others.

Over the years, CMA has played a critical role in the food safety and security in the country. Major instances include the cyclical droughts that led to maize shortages, where the CMA, in a bid to bridge the deficit, bought all local maize at market determined prices and imported more while working with the Government to sell at sub-sidised prices to avert a crisis. Members of the association have also supported the local wheat farmers in Kenya by buying all their wheat at a premium price for over 10 years to protect local farming and encourage increased and ef-ficient crop production to meet the current growing mill-ing and consumer demands.

Most recently, CMA members have been actively in-volved in many CSR activities to assist families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic through donations of food items, soap and water tanks, as well as cash donations among others, to various counties across the country. We thank them for their commitment to serving our country.

We at the Cereal Millers Association are passionate about food safety and remain committed to providing you, our consumers, with safe and affordable food.

Our sustained passion for food safety and security over the years

I take this opportunity to wish members of the Cereal Millers Association (CMA) a very happy 20th Anniversary and thank them for

the tremendous support accorded to the Asso-ciation over the years.

The humble beginnings of CMA date back to 1994 with a few wheat millers, whose vision went beyond self-interest and focused on ad-dressing matters of national interest by trying to liberalise the grain markets. The Wheat Mill-ers Association was officially registered as the CMA in year 2000, with the objective of deal-ing with policy issues, removal of trade barri-ers and creating a conducive business environ-ment for the grain milling industry.

Today, our membership consists of 42 grain milling companies and seven international grain traders, with many applications in the pipeline. Our total grain milling capacity is approximately 20,000 tonnes per day and close to six million tonnes of grain annually, accounting for 90 percent of the wheat milling capacity and 40 percent of the maize milling capacity in Kenya.

CMA is governed by a competent, qualified and experienced Management Committee, which plays a crucial role in oversight as well as providing significant guidance on strategy and in tackling national issues. Technical and legal matters are handled by working commit-tees headed by experts, while operational and administrative matters are addressed by a ro-bust secretariat.

Members adhere to strict governance codes and anti-competitive compliance policies, and undergo capacity building initiatives such as crisis management, media training, corporate

BY PALOMA FERNANDESChief Executive Officer, CMA

TechnoServe SAPFF programme experts demonstrating qualitative fortification monitoring in a mill to a technical team drawn from CMA members.

Our vision at CMA is to provide safe, affordable and adequate food. To achieve

this objective, our members must adhere to a rigorous code of conduct where they are vetted and audited by a team of external technical experts on a regular basis”

CMA Leadership Team

Kamaldeep Singh PhullVice Chairman

Chair - Grain Quality & Marketing

Mohamed Islam Ali Chairman

Chair - Corporate Affairs & Strategy

Mitesh PatelTreasurer

Chair - Maize CommitteeCorporate Affairs & Strategy

Said AboudAssistant Secretary

Risk Management, Legal, Policy & Audit Committee

Nick Hutchinson Immediate Past Chairman Chair - Wheat Committee Grain Quality & Marketing

Alex DietzChair - Trader Representative

Grain Quality & Marketing

Niraj ShahSecretary

Risk Management, Legal, Policy & Audit Committee

Nirmal ShahAssistant Treasurer

Chair - Risk Management, Legal, Policy & Audit Committee

The leadership team (Management Committee) at the CMA consists of highly skilled, qualified and experienced members of the Association. This

team has a very critical role to play in ensuring that CMA upholds high standards of ethics and corporate behaviour so that every household can access ade-quate, affordable and safe food. Its stewardship must also steer the CMA towards its vision of having an effi-cient and transparent commercial grain milling indus-try in Kenya and the region.

The leadership team further ensures the sustain-ability of CMA by asserting the integrity of its inter-nal controls as well as compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, governance codes and guidelines. The leadership team establishes systems to effectively monitor and control compliance.

To achieve the goals of the Association, the Board has adopted a strict Code of Conduct for all members.

Members of the leadership team head the follow-ing working committees towards ensuring that every aspect of the Governance of the CMA is being looked into:

• Risk Management, Legal, Policy and Audit Committee

This committee is primarily responsible for over-

seeing risk management framework and poli-cies of the CMA.

• Corporate Affairs and Strategy Committee This committee is responsible for the Strate-

gic plan of the CMA, Training and Capacity Development and Communication strategies.

• Grain Quality and Marketing Committee This committee is responsible for maintaining

food balance sheets, creating market linkages with farmers, trade facilitation (both local and international) as well safety and quality assur-ance.

The leadership, membership and Secretariat of the CMA also serve in various board positions/steering committees in critical national industry forums such as the Maize Taskforce, ASNET, Kenya Association of Manufacturers, Accelerated Value Crop Development Committee, the National Cere-als and Produce Board, the National Food Balance Sheet, the National Food Safety Steering Commit-tee, Cassava Taskforce, Maize Subsidy Programme, Covid Business Group, Local Wheat Taskforce and various aflatoxin and food fortification forums, among others.

How it all startedFOUNDER MEMBERS OF THE CEREAL MILLERS ASSOCIATION

Azim Lalji

Diamond Lalji

Aneez Lalji

Sunil Shah Rajesh Shah

Mohamed Islam Ali

Salim Bajaber

The Late Narshi Punja Shah

Nick Hutchinson

1992: Government Control: The wheat industry was controlled by the Government. All wheat would be bought by the National Cereals and Produce Board and sold at a fixed price to the millers. The millers’ selling price would then be controlled by the Government.

1994: Liberalisation of Grain Markets: The liberali-sation of grain markets played a central role in stimulating the rise in free trade. Farmers were now able to deal directly with the millers and prices were regulated by market forces. How-ever, there was a lack of structure/mechanism to handle the volumes of wheat required to make this move more effective.

As local production could not meet the needs of the consumers, there was also a need to im-plement structures for importation of wheat grain to cover the deficit.

1998: The Dawn of a New Paradigm: This para-digm shift in doing business created a need for the millers whose vision would go beyond self-interest and focus on addressing matters of national interest by getting together to work out a system to ensure sustainability of the industry. This was the basis of the forma-tion of the Wheat Millers Association.

2000. Industry growth: As the industry and the milling businesses for both wheat and maize

grew, there was a need to formalise an entity that would enable grain milling business-es to adequately prepare and adapt to the changing political and economic environ-ments. The Cereal Millers Association (CMA) was officially registered and launched with Mr Nick Hutchinson as the first Chairman, Mr Rajesh Shah as the Secretary and Mr Aneez Lalji as the Treasurer. Nick Hutchinson went on to chair the association until 2006.

2007: Growing the Association: As CMA grew in strength, there was a need to formalise its governance structures. The CMA employed Mrs Paloma Fernandes as its first Chief Exec-utive officer to work collaboratively with the board towards achieving CMA’s mission and vision. The Association was then registered afresh as a Society. The first office bearers of the society included Mr Diamond Lalji (Chairman), Mr Salim Bajaber (Vice-Chair), Mr Aneez Lalji (Treasurer) and Mr Rajesh Shah (Secretary). Mr Diamond Lalji chaired the Association until 2014, when Mr Nick Hutchinson ably took over until 2018, hand-ing over to Mr Mohamed Islam.

We take this opportunity to thank our founder members for their vision and commitment to the milling industry.

Bühler Nairobi and the African Milling School have enjoyed a great partnership with the Cereal Millers Association. A warm congratulations on 20 years of great contribution to the milling industry in Kenya.

Since the inauguration of the African Milling School in 2015, we are proud to count the Cereal Millers Association as our valued partner, frequently training their members on the latest milling technology, maintenance and food safety aspects.

Bühler Group, headquartered in Switzerland, has over 160 years in the global food market and is the leading technology provider for all your Grains and Food Processing Equipment.

With operations and a sales office in Nairobi over the past 30 years, we endeavour to create innovations for a better world, with a special focus on healthy, safe and sustainable solutions.

We are proud to introduce you to our latest innovation the AlPesaTM Milling System. One solution for processing Traditional Atta Flour and Multi-Grains. It is a compact and complete milling system with a capacity of up to 18 tonnes per day.

Visit us / Talk to us for more details: Buhler Limited, Sukari Industrial Estate, Ruiru, Kenya E : buhler.nairobi@buhlergroup.comT : +254720180011 W: www.buhlergroup.com, www.africanmillingschool.com

ing undergoes necessary scrutiny. These staff also monitor the resultant product prior to being despatched from the mills.

Additionally, CMA members have in-vested heavily in capacity building for all its technical personnel as well as in testing equipment, including accredited laborato-ries. All CMA members have been trained on aflatoxin measurement and have pro-tocols that are at par with globally accept-ed Good Manufacturing Practices in place.

Further, CMA maize millers have inter-

nal quality systems they enforce.The Association works with a team of

food safety technical experts such as Tech-noserve, APTECA (Aflatoxin Proficiency Testing for East and Central Africa), BecA ILRI Hub, University of Nairobi and various other partners. These institutions work with the CMA technical teams in each mill to ensure compliance to food safety re-quirements and fortification.

Most mills owned by CMA members have in-house laboratories which test products at intake and before packaging, and give quantitative results.

In 2010, the CMA took a bold step to self-regulate

in the fight against aflatoxins. It became the first milling Association in East and Central Africa to do so”

By VIVIAN HOFFMANNInternational Food Policy Research Institute

Why cheapest is not always best

When it comes to maize flour, you might think it’s all the same. But research by the International Food Policy Research Institute shows wide var-

iation across brands in terms of aflatoxin risk, and the cheapest brands are often the most contaminated.

In general, larger millers tend to have better capacity for testing maize and are more strictly regulated by the government than smaller-scale operations.

Unrefined flour from posho mills is even more likely to contain unsafe levels of aflatoxin than packaged flour, especially in parts of the country with high aflatoxin risk like Eastern Kenya.

When deciding which maize flour to buy for your fam-ily, keep in mind that the cheapest option may not be the safest.

Read more: https://www.ifpri.org/publication/you-get-what-you-pay-link-between-price-and-food-safety-kenya

Vivian Hoffmann is a Senior Research Fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute

Our commitment to food safety

CMA addresses the inherent misconception that millers are solely responsible for aflatoxins in maize

Aflatoxin Proficiency Testing and Control in Africa (APTECA) was initiated in 2014 to serve mem-

bers of the Cereal Millers Association through the adoption of a quality sys-tems approach to measure and man-age aflatoxin risk. It is built on a reg-ulatory foundation comprised of gov-ernment-backed codes of practice, including laws, rules, and standards.

Some of the core practices of APTE-CA include offering a global aflatox-in proficiency testing programme, laboratory reference material, ana-lyst qualification, and testing verifi-cation within the context of an ISO 17025:2017 accredited laboratory environment to ensure accurate sam-

pling for and testing of aflatoxin. In 2015 and 2018, APTECA trained

and qualified 45 analysts from 24 milling companies in CMA. In 2019, APTECA carried internal mill evalua-tions that assisted CMA maize millers to determine status of quality systems of its mills.

All maize milling companies are part of the global PT programme. These activities have greatly im-proved aflatoxin risk management in maize milling companies and thus en-hanced food safety and quality.

APTECA is hosted by Texas A&M AgriLife Research and involves col-laboration with NGOs, universities, research institutions and industry (apteca.tamu.edu).

APTECA

TechnoServe would like to take this opportunity to congratu-late the Cereal Millers Associ-

ation on their anniversary marking 20 years of exceptional service in representing the maize and wheat milling industry in Kenya.

With a combined maize and wheat milling capacity of six million tons per annum, and reach of 30 million consumers, the endeavour to provide safe and affordable food has never been so paramount.

An organisation, no matter how well designed, is only as good as the people who live and work in it. This notion is truly embodied by the Ce-real Millers Association. It is evident through our ongoing partnership.

TechnoServe, through the Strengthening African Processors of Fortified Foods (SAPFF) pro-gramme, is proud to be working with the Cereal Millers Association and its members to increase access to adequately fortified foods and strengthen food safety standards, while uplifting the milling sector in Kenya to be more competitive in the

global arena. Under the leadership of the CMA,

we have seen a significant improve-ment in this regard, which was chiefly accomplished through the collective commitment to contin-uous improvement and pursuit of excellence of the milling sector in Kenya.

TechnoServe is a leader in har-nessing the power of the private sector to help people lift themselves out of poverty.

A non-profit organisation oper-ating in 29 countries, we work with enterprising men and women in the developing world to build compet-itive farms, businesses, and indus-tries.

By linking people to informa-tion, capital, and markets, we have helped millions to create lasting prosperity for their families and communities. With 50 years of prov-en results, TechnoServe believes in the power of private enterprise to transform lives.

Wishing you many more years of unparalleled success and profound impact.

Some of the core practices of APTECA include offering a global aflatoxin proficiency testing programme, laboratory reference material,

analyst qualification, and testing verification within the context of an ISO 17025:2017 accredited laboratory environment”

TECHNOSERVE IFPRI

Aflatoxin is a poison produced by certain fungi, and can cause severe damage to the liver, possibly lead-

ing to death. It cannot be seen or tasted. It is a silent killer.

The Cereal Millers Association (CMA) strongly believes that all stakeholders, throughout the entire maize value chain, should be actively involved in tackling aflatoxin. Focusing largely on flour, the end-product of maize, limits the efficacy on the war against the poisonous fungi.

The country should address the prob-lem right from planting, on to harvesting, through to storage and transportation, and finally at the milling factories. This will address the problem effectively.

Aflatoxin starts in soils. Therefore, much needs to be done around regulating farm-ing practice where mitigation might be most effective. A good example is Aflasafe, a natural product that has been proven to substantially reduce aflatoxin at farm level. However, its cost has often deterred farm-ers from using it.

Postharvest handling of maize is anoth-er point in the value chain, which if man-aged well, can help control the spread of aflatoxin. Maize should be cleaned and dried at farm level to bring down the moisture to acceptable levels. Storage and transportation of maize with high levels of

moisture can result in the spread of afla-toxin.

Monitoring and enforcing adequate quality along the produce value chain is extremely important. Maize gets con-sumed in a variety of ways – from green maize to posho milled flour to sifted maize flour. Kenyans will only be protected if the entire value chain plays its role.

CMA appeals to the Government to add its weight behind the war against aflatoxin in the following ways:

Firstly, CMA observes that certain re-gions are known to produce maize with high aflatoxin content. These include the former Eastern Province in Kenya and some parts of Uganda. Farmers need bet-ter support and guidance to plant other crops instead of maize.

Secondly, the Government should stem the practice by some traders and trans-porters, of blending good maize with afla-toxin contaminated maize. CMA calls on the Government to build aflatoxin testing capacity at all border points to stop con-taminated maize from entering Kenya.

Thirdly, strict controls are required to prevent the rejected maize from being taken back into the food chain. Otherwise, aflatoxin contaminated maize that is re-jected by certain millers will keep being purchased by others (often at a discount!) and still end up on a Kenyan’s plate.

Fourthly, the Government can work with its scientists to look at alternative

uses of maize with higher levels of aflatox-ins. Using scientific evidence, the thresh-olds can be adjusted to allow such maize to be used for making feeds for livestock that tolerate aflatoxin contamination more. The argument is that in the absence of alternative uses, contaminated maize will find its way back to the human food value chain.

Finally, the Government should also ed-ucate stakeholders on the danger of com-mercialising and consuming mouldy foods and train personnel at all levels (scientists, technicians, extension agents and local

By EVANS ONGWAEeongwae@ke.nationmedia.com

farmers) in sampling protocols and mod-ern methods of mycotoxin analysis.

What has CMA done to address the afla-toxin problem?In 2010, the CMA took a bold step to self-regulate in the fight against aflatoxins. It became the first milling Association in East and Central Africa to do so.

CMA members adopted a rigorous code of conduct to test maize received by mem-bers at their mills. The millers have quality control staff whose sole responsibility is to ensure all raw material purchased for mill-

CMA officials at a meeting with the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture to discuss the aflatoxin mitigation.

By RIZWAN YUSUF ALIBy ANN MUIRURI

Cereal Millers Association hosting the International Association of Operative Millers Conference in Kenya for the first time. The conference, held in October 2018 attracted over 800 delegates.

Corporate Governance Training for CMA members by the Centre for Corporate Governance.

CMA technical team during aflatoxin training at the University of Nairobi in 2013.

A group photo on food safety training and capacity building. Food safety is non-negotiable for members of the CMA.

OVER THE YEARS IN PICTURES

CMA traders attending a familiriasation meeting with Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS). Group photo of the CMA technical team during a training on fortification at the African Milling School.

CMA members contribution towards the Kenyans for Kenya Initiative during the drought of 2011. Members of the CMA transport and logistics teams in action at the Kenya for Kenya Food Initiative in 2011.

Demonstrating conservation agriculture practices at a CGA Field Day in Timau, Meru County.

KEBS celebrates CMA for solid partnershipMessage from the Kenya Bureau of Standards

Lt.col (Rtd) Bernard NjirainiManaging Director, Kenya

Bureau of Standards

standards-based solutions that promote trade, innovation and quality life. We aim at promoting self-regulation in the sector. There-

The Kenya Bureau of Stand-ards congratulates the Cereal Millers Association

(CMA) as they commemorate their 20th anniversary.

Over the years, KEBS has partnered with CMA and other industry associations to create an enabling environment for healthy and safe foods through collaboration in quality control and standardisation.

CMA, like other associations, has been instrumental in creat-ing an avenue through which KEBS relay vital information re-garding the quality of cereals, both as raw material and as pro-cessed foods.

KEBS mission is to provide

The Agriculture Sector Net-work (ASNET) congratu-lates the Cereal Millers As-

sociation (CMA) for making it 20 years of existence so far.

The association is a valued partner of ASNET, the newly es-tablished institution that seeks to coordinate the agriculture community goals in pursuit of the much desired transforma-tion of Kenya’s agricultural in-dustry for accelerated economic development.

In many ways, CMA has a li-brary of experience collected over the last 20 years. As an or-ganisation at the centre of value addition in the cereals sub-sec-tor, it is arguably an outstanding case study on the various levels of a vertically integrated indus-try. CMA members offer farmers

ASNET keen to benefit from CMA’s 20-year experience

Dr Bimal R. KantariaChairman, Agriculture Sector

Network a ready, guaranteed market for wheat and maize. The two crops constitute Kenya’s staple foods, with maize leading the pack. A typical Kenyan kitchen cannot be complete without ugali, the high-est consumed meal in the country.

Value addition involves pro-

fore, development of self-regu-lation mechanisms is an area of close collaboration with CMA.

We have provided conform-ity assessment services through product certification, quality in-spection of imports and market surveillance.

Our partnership with CMA has been very instrumental and continues to play a key role in achieving the following goals in this sector:

• Standards development, including, KS EAS 2 Maize grain, KS EAS 767 - Fortified Milled Wheat, etc.

• Coordinated response to emerging food safety con-cerns, like aflatoxins con-tamination.

We wish to commend the ef-forts of the association for their drive to keep improving the in-dustry through joint efforts. Let us all build our nation by pro-viding safe food.

cessing of maize into flour, which means CMA members play a crit-ical role in food security, the core objective of farming. By process-ing maize into flour, industries have been created, providing the much needed employment.

It is our conviction as ASNET that there are massive opportu-nities in the expansion of produc-tion and processing capacity in cereal milling. We will therefore endeavour to support CMA in this growth for the benefit of all.

CMA members offer farmers a ready,

guaranteed market for wheat and maize”

Industry Partners

Growers look forward to many more years of partnership with CMAThe board, management and staff of Cereal Growers Association (CGA) wish to congratulate the Cereal Millers Association (CMA) on this auspi-cious occasion of your 20th Anniversary.

CGA is a national member-based farmer organisation incorporated in August 1996. The association brings together commercial cereal (maize, wheat, barley, sorghum, millet) farmers and their service pro-viders to promote collective action. CGA works with over 100 industry stakeholders such as government agencies, agricultural input suppli-ers, financial institutions, insurance companies, output buyers, and de-velopment partners, among others, to provide services to its members.

Collaboration with the Cereal Millers AssociationCGA has over the last 20 years collaborated with the Cereal Millers As-sociation (CMA) on a variety of initiatives of mutual interest. Key among these has been the local wheat purchase programme implemented under the current duty remission scheme. At least 200,000 to 250,000 metric tons of local wheat is purchased annually in a semi-structured market arrangement.

We have also collaborated in addressing the challenge of aflatoxin contamination in maize. This is an ongoing effort and aims at ensur-ing access to quality, safe food to consumers. CGA and CMA are also members of several industry technical working groups and task forces aimed at addressing emerging challenges within the sector.

In coming days, we hope to strengthen our partnership with CMA to address such areas as joint research into matters of mutual interest, contract farming and digitisation of supply chain activities. Such part-nership will lead to a more predictable market environment, enhanced investment in the sector and therefore a greater contribution to the national goal of 100 percent food and nutrition security.

Once again, congratulations on this major milestone. We look for-ward to many more years of partnership in the service to Kenya’s agri-cultural sector.

Millers Limited

on your 20 years of service to the Grain Milling Industry.

We truly appreciate your dedication!

Kabansora Road, off Eastern Bypass, Embakasi, P.O. Box 78284,00520 Nairobi, Kenya.Contacts - 0722 206 055, 0736 999 111

email: sale@kabansora.co.ke

Period 1: April - September 2017• In 2017, Kenya faced a severe drought that result-

ed in low maize stocks. • With little opportunity to import stocks from the

region due to trade barriers and high prices, the high demand of locally-sourced maize resulted in the price of 2kg packet of flour hitting a record Ksh150.

• To ease the burden on consumers, the Gov-ernment introduced a maize flour subsidy pro-gramme that was to run between March and Sep-tember 2017.

• The plan was to have a packet of 2kg flour retail at not more than Ksh90.

• To achieve this, the Government would supply maize to designated millers at Ksh2,300 per 90kg.

• In May 2017, the Government floated an open tender for maize at the prevailing Ksh3,600 per bag at international market price.

• Coincidentally, some private millers had imported maize for their own mills but agreed to sell these stocks to the Government to support the subsidy programme.

• All millers participated in this programme to assist the government, despite numerous challenges, including severe delays in berthing that resulted in demurrage charges of Ksh1.3 billion, logistical

challenges in transporting maize to respective mills and companies losing the opportunity to dif-ferentiate their brands, in which they had heavily invested because of uniform pricing.

Period 2: October - December 2017• In October 2017, as the subsidy programme,

which had been earlier extended from September 30 to October 15, approached its end, the supply of locally supplied maize had not improved due to due to the fall army-worm invasion and inad-equate rainfall. To avoid maize flour prices rising again, the Government extended the subsidy pro-gramme one more time to December 31, 2017.

• Millers continued to face the aforementioned challenges during the extended period, but were committed to support the Government’s pro-gramme.

Period 3: January to May 2018• Between January and May 2018, there was suffi-

cient flow of local maize and abundance of maize from Uganda and Tanzania. Prices of maize flour post-subsidy remained either the same or below the subsidy level.

• However, to date millers remain unpaid to the tune of Ksh3 billion.

CMA’s contribution to food security during the 2017 Maize Subsidy Programme

Kwa Afya Bora na Nguvu! Chaguo ni 210!

Another great reason to celebrate fruitful years to come!Congratulations on your 20th Anniversary

Kenblest Information Desk: Tel: +254 721 490-800, +254 734 490-800

Email: info@kenblestgroup.com | Website: www.kenblestgroup.com

Back in the day, Kenya produced 90 per-cent of its wheat required for various uses, including milling into flour. Currently, the country produces only about 10 percent of the total wheat required for milling. This is equivalent to an annual production of about 200,000 metric tonnes. The rest is imported to cover for the deficit. This significant drop has been occasioned by farming and invest-ment practices that have reduced the total acreage of land used for wheat growing.

To address the matter, the Cereal Millers Association (CMA), in collaboration with the Cereal Growers Association (CGA), proposed to the Ministry of Finance and Treasury and the Ministry of Agriculture, to introduce a lo-cal wheat purchasing programme. This was in 2010. To date, the initiative guarantees a market for local wheat, and thus promotes Kenyan wheat farming.

For the last almost 10 years since the in-ception of the programme, wheat farmers in different regions of Narok, Uasin Gishu, Na-kuru, Laikipia, Timau, Machakos, Rumuruti and Maralal, have been able to supply mill-ers with their wheat.

While the local production of the wheat grain is considered very low, this pro-gramme ensures that the farmers supply all their wheat to mostly CMA millers at premi-um price – better than international market prices. Thus, CMA has played an important role in encouraging farmers to expand their wheat coverage throughout the country.

Also introduced in 2010 was the East Africa Community (EAC) Duty Remission Scheme to enhance the competitiveness of Kenyan manufacturers, with installed capac-ities to export products without being con-strained by taxes and also effectively reduce the cost of wheat milling for industries that

Encouraging Wheat Production in KenyaBy THE CMA WHEAT COMMITTEE are engaged in both domestic and export mar-

kets. Raw materials such as wheat flour attract a 25

percent remission under this scheme, to be im-ported at 10 percent duty. These rates are deter-mined in an annual gathering of the East Africa Community Customs Union (EACCU), where the five member states meet to agree on a common external tariff (CET) to be applied when importing the raw materials within 12 months.

The Tax Remission for Export Office (TREO) is located in the Ministry of Finance and is respon-sible for matters relating to the administration of the regulations that govern the Duty Remission Scheme.

This scheme has in effect helped in consumer protection, where the approved and gazetted wheat grain millers have managed to keep the consumer price of wheat flour at a manageable level while at the same time giving the local farm-ers the opportunity to enjoy market access for their wheat grain.

Kenya’s exports and sales to the region have been adversely affected by the high border tar-iffs imposed on the finished products. To radically change the situation, a solution can be achieved by harmonisation of the regulatory framework of the EAC countries and supporting the govern-ment’s efforts in this direction at all levels.

CMA continues to work with the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries through the Agricultural Food Authority and farmers, in the development of wheat farming.

While the local production of the wheat grain is considered very

low, this programme ensures that the farmers supply all their wheat to mostly CMA millers at premium price – better than international market prices”

CMA members after a training session on Grain Grading and Mycotoxin Management at Cargill, Nakuru, as organised by TechnoServe SAPFF programme.

Wheat farming has under-gone major changes over the last couple of years.

WHEAT PRODUCTION

INVESTING INTHE INDUSTRY

CREATINGOPPORTUNITIES

15,000Direct Jobs

450,000Indirect Jobs

15,000Farmers

KES 36.7Billion

in Capital InvestmentPast 5 years through

Expansion & New mills

FEEDINGTHE NATION61.7Million

2kg packets of Wheat

per month

32.2Million

2kg packets of Maize

per month

CMA’s Contribution to

Kenya’s Economy

2015 - 2019

CMA MILLINGCAPACITY

WHEAT MAIZE

WHEAT PAYOUTApprox.

KES 28.9Billion

Paid in import duties between

2015 & 2019

Approx.

KES 40.3Billion

Paid to local farmers

between 2015 & 2019

Wheat Milling Capacity versus Utilization

80%74%

64%

51%47%

2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

-

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

2,500,000

3,000,000

3,500,000

4,000,000

4,500,000

9,057 9,822 10,122

10,922

13,472

5,065 5,215 5,897 6,197

6,829

5,000

7,000

9,000

11,000

13,000

15,000

2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Lower Narok 49%

Nakuru21%

Eldoret16%

Upper Narok

8%

Timau 6%

Per day

AFLATOXIN REJECTION

source: Data collected by CMA Secretariat. Findings are based on a five-year period analysis with base year being 2015.

Mill

ing

Capa

city (

in M

T)M

illing Utilization

10%

18%

13%

21%

26%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Avg.

Mai

ze R

ejec

tion

from

CM

A M

ills

Rich in IRON & VITAMINS that build health

on 20 years of service to the milling industrycongratulates CEREAL MILLERS ASSOCIATION

Kenya’s weather conditions this year look favour-

able for the harvest in the second half. Typi-cally, Kenya produces 300,000 metric tonnes of wheat and 3.5 mil-lion metric tonnes of maize a year. Watch this space, as we have yet to

understand the effect of the locust swarms on do-mestic grain production.

International grain markets are showing healthy balance sheets of the back of good planting and weather conditions.

Wheat futures have rallied off the back of Chi-na moving towards buying US wheat. Funds have pushed this move up creating a further upward pres-sure on futures.

Cash wheat prices have started to follow the fu-tures, driving up the price. Fuel price is also up, mov-ing freight and thus CFR prices up.

Black Sea wheat remains the world’s cheapest wheat. When world demand comes to buy, it will go to Russia and Ukraine until December when we expect Argentine wheat to be the world’s cheapest milling wheat.

We expect the world to continue to produce sig-nificant wheat from export countries in the Black Sea, Europe, Australia and South America, weather conditions allowing.

Farmers in these regions continue to invest in on-farm harvest and transport machinery as well as stor-age. This provides the farmer with the capability to produce more grain and store it for longer.

Sub-Saharan Africa, whilst a well-yielding in re-gions, has smaller plot sizes compared to those in countries that produce large volumes for export. Should this change domestically and the farmers get the incentives to grow large volumes, then we could move from net deficit to net surplus. This would take concentrated effort and commitment over a sus-tained period, by both the public and private sector players.

Demand for grain continues to grow year on year in East Africa at a rate of 6-7 percent per annum. This demand is here to stay.

What to expect from grain markets this yearBy ALEXANDER DIETZTrader Representative, CMA

PO BOX: 78008-00507 Nairobi Kenya | Website: www.spiceworldltd.co.ke

Happy 20th Anniversary to CMA and its members. The achievements of an association are the result of the combined efforts of every member.

The Nation Media Group (NMG) congratulates Cereal Millers Association on this milestone and wishes you well as you continue to feed the nation.

NFM ADVERT-OUTLINES.pdf 2 07/07/2020 12:10

Staying relevant: Your brand strength matters

The truth is, no one knows your brand better than you. Definitely, building it didn’t happen overnight. It must have

taken hard work.Your brand, like a tree, could be hun-

dreds of years in the works. By implement-ing efficient organisational structures, elaborate food and health management systems, your customers are guaranteed of high quality products. They connect, attach and highly commit to your brands and form a relationship with them, thus helping you to stand out. Simply, your

brand is your reputation! Your reputa-tion is your strength! Your strength is your security!

A tree is a preferred analogy for strength, security and longevity. Your brand is a living tree that grows, chang-es, and evolves. Every successful brand has a powerful purpose as its roots. If your roots are poorly structured, it means your brand lacks purpose.

Like a stem that supports the growth of a tree, your brand grows your mar-ket position and helps you withstand all tough competition. The leaves and branches appeal to the world and so is your brand. Your visibility and proactiv-ity demands that you adapt to the ever changing climate and business environ-ment.

In the uncertain markets, due to the increasing pressure to deliver superior products, the volatile market structures, and the complexity of consumer behav-iour, more customers have turned to the social and other digital media to either laud efforts or viciously attack a brand. The latter has led to a lot of negative effects on the brands involved. The ef-fects of a brand collapse have far-reach-ing detriments to the company, such

as loss in sales, reduced effectiveness of marketing strategies and loss of consumer trust. It’s imperative for a thriving milling company to craft a just-right, just-in-time responses to counter any unpredictable negative brand publicity so that you are

branches and leaves. Purpose-driven and authentic branding gives you an edge above your competitors.

Small or medium scale businesses may be competing against big brands with huge market share, which makes it critical that you stay focused on your business strategy and find disruptive ways to innovatively differentiate yourself in order to stay relevant. The minute your company loses its rele-vance, you lose the value to your in-dustry.

Many members of the CMA have experienced huge financial losses because of counterfeit flour and flour products. To preserve and protect the identity and credibility of our mem-bers and their brand reputation and relevance, the Cereal Millers Associ-ation, being aware of counterfeiting, will work together with the Anti-Coun-terfeit Authority (ACA) and other relat-ed multi-agency enforcement teams in their efforts to combat illicit trade and other dealings in counterfeit flour. And as the ACA would have it, “The Fight against Counterfeiting is a Must Win Battle!”

able to rescue a collapsing brand and re-store customer trust and confidence dur-ing hard times.

Too often, companies forget that it is actually the roots down below that dictate the success of your brands more than the

By STEPHEN OGALLOOperations Manager, CMA

African Milling School staff demonstrating to a technical group of CMA millers on microfeeder calibration during a sector-wide training, organised by Technoserve SAPFF programme in August 2018.

CMA Brands: Symbols of QualityProduct Catalog

3

Product Catalog

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