Govt tightens grain export conditions, standards body roots for quality mark

Effective October 1, 2025, grains that have no quality mark (Q-mark) will not be cleared for export. This was revealed by Uganda National Bureau of Standards deputy executive director Patricia Ejalu.

The new measure is to ensure that Ugandan farmers earn from their grains, which have, on many occasions, been rejected.

Zackey Kalega, the commissioner Internal Trade interacts with Patricia Ejalu, UNBS deputy executive director during a meeting at Four points by Sheraton Kampala on July 30, 2025. (Credit: Juliet Kasirye)

Ejalu revealed this on Wednesday, August 6, 2025, during a meeting between grain buyers and sellers organised by the Grain Council of Uganda in partnership with the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank.

“So, when we close the gap, it means that only certified grains will participate in the trade. We want to resolve issues affecting the grain value chain and its products,” Ejalu said.

She added that in the meantime, the national co-ordination forum that brings together both the Government and the private sector continues with the sensitisation of the value chain actors to adjust so as to participate in the streamlined trade.

Buyers and sellers of grain interact during a meeting at Four Points by Sheraton Kampala on July 30, 2025. (Credit: Juliet Kasirye)

Ejalu explained that although there are many actors along the value chain, which include farmers, aggregators, processors, and suppliers, among others, all these will have to work according to the set grain standards.

“Some of the complaints we still get are that people are still buying maize by the roadside and positioning it as an export product, but this will not work anymore because to export, you need clearance from UNBS and also clearance from the agriculture ministry to export,” she added.