Depressed maize prices following the record bumper crop in 2017 could result in a shift to soybean farming next season, economists say. Favourable weather patterns allowed farmers to raise production and recover from the severe drought caused by the 2015-16 El Niño effect. However, since then maize prices have plummeted. During the drought, the spot price of yellow maize peaked to R4,110 a tonne in January 2016. However, it stood at R1,941 a tonne on Wednesday, while that of soybean was R4,740 a tonne from R5,454 a tonne in January. Absa agricultural economist Conce Moraba said there could be a shift to soybean given the expected 2.2-million tonnes of maize carried over into the next marketing year. But prices would need to favour the production of soybean to that of maize. Soybean forms part of oilseed crops and is predominantly used for its oil and protein-rich content. Farmers use soybean meal produced by processors as a feeding ingredient in poultry, beef, pork and fish foods. O...
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