It is World Food Programme policy to enter into ‘triangular’ food aid transactions — the purchase by donors of food commodities from developing exporting countries for use as food aid — whenever feasible. The maize train operations in Zimbabwe are a case in point. Bumper maize crops between 1980 and 1982, which caused severe storage problems, coincided with food shortages in neighbouring countries, and grain purchased through the Zimbabwean Grain Marketing Board was distributed to 15 African states. These operations have also involved the reconstruction or improvement of the transport and communications network, including the provision of storage units and shelters and the stationing of experienced transport coordinators, with donors providing both cash and expertise.