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Reference Date: 24-April-2013
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FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT
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Estimates for the 2012 harvest point to another above average cereal production
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Cereal markets remain well supplied, following last year’s good crop
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The 2013 rainy season has started in the South
The raining season has started in the southern part of the country, where planting of the first maize crop is underway. Planting will progress northwards with the onset of rains.
A good crop was gathered in 2012 for the second year in a row
Harvesting of the 2012 cereal crop was completed last January. According to the final estimates, the 2012 cereal output was estimated at about 1.5 million tonnes, similar to the previous year’s record crop. This level of production is 12 percent above the average of the previous five years. Production of maize, the main staple cereal, is estimated at a record 1.17 million tonnes. The improvement is also driven by a significant growth in rice production which increased by 75 percent over the past two years.
Prices of coarse grains continue to follow normal seasonal patterns in general
Reflecting last year’s good harvests, markets remain generally well supplied and coarse grains prices continue to follow normal seasonal patterns in most parts of the country. For example, in Cotonou, maize prices remained mostly stable since November 2012, and in February 2012 they were 6 percent below their levels a year earlier. However, maize prices increased by 40 percent in February in the northern city of Malanville, driven by reduced supplies in neighbouring Nigeria and increased cross-border export to Niger.
Prices of imported rice, mainly consumed in urban centres, remained stable across the country in recent months, in line with trends in international markets.
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