Kampala — Food scarcity in Busoga has pushed up the prices of food.

In rural parts of Mayuge district, residents told The New Vision they eat one meal a day. They said the prices of food in the markets had also been hiked.

Jafari Zoozo, a resident, said: "The problem was the long drought that has destroyed the crops. To make matters worse, the farmers sold the little produce they harvested to traders from the urban centres," Zoozo explained.

Many people depend on fruits like mangoes and fene (jack fruit) for their lunch or supper. It is difficult to come across farmland with crops in it.

Albert Ikoba, the LCI chief of Ntafungirwa village in Mayuge, called for mass sensitisation of residents about the need for food reserves at home.

"We used to have well-stocked granaries in the past but now, few homesteads have them," Ikoba added.