WANDILE SIHLOBO: SA’s maize supplies are not looking at all bad
The Crop Estimates Committee left its 2018/2019 maize harvest estimate essentially unchanged from May, so SA is likely to remain a net exporter of maize in the 2019/2020 marketing year
SA’s maize supplies for the 2018/2019 production year are shaping up better than feared in January 2019. This is when dryness in the western parts of the country threatened to delay plantings.
On June 26, SA’s Crop Estimates Committee left its 2018/2019 maize harvest estimate essentially unchanged from May, at 10.9-million tonnes. About 5.5-million tonnes is white maize, with 5.4-million tonnes being yellow maize. While it is comforting to see that there were no downward revisions, the expected harvest is 13% lower than last season’s harvest due to a slight reduction in area planted and poor yields on the back of dryness during the season. ..
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