Pulses rerouted to avoid food pipeline break

Almost 2,000 mt of pulses are expected to be rerouted to Malawi to avoid a break in the local pipeline in coming months, the World Food Programme (WFP) said on Monday. WFP Malawi was facing a pulses shortfall of 73 percent in May and a complete break in June, the UN food agency said in its latest situation update. "The WFP regional office in Johannesburg is getting donor clearance for the rerouting of 2,000 mt of pulses to Malawi. These pulses were not for the country, but there is now a need here. Without the donor clearance we could see a break in the pipeline, but we expect that it will be approved," Abdelgadir Hamid, WFP reports officer in Malawi, told IRIN. WFP Malawi was also working on the local procurement of 636 mt of pulses to cater to immediate needs, he added. Erratic rainfall in some parts of the country had caused food aid requirements to increase from 2,845 mt to over 5,415 mt for May, and from about 2,255 to 5,195 mt in June, WFP said. An estimated 500,000 Malawians are dependent on food aid.