Agricultural markets cannot function without institutions or the “rules of the game”. The state, therefore, has an important duty to ensure appropriate institutions are in place and functional.
The outlook for global agricultural conditions is again in the spotlight as the 2021/22 global grains and oilseed production season commences in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, the season will only start around October. The International Grains Council (IGC) released its estimates at the end of April 2021 and painted a generally optimistic view for essential grains and oilseeds production for 2021/22.
SA’s maize industry has enjoyed an astonishing improvement in yields since the adoption of genetically modified (GM) seeds in the 2000/2001 production season. Yields improved from an average of 2.8 tonnes per hectare in 2000/2001 to about 5.9 tonnes per hectare in the 2019/2020 production season.
South Africa’s Crop Estimates Committee mildly lifted its forecast for 2020/21 summer grain and oilseeds production from last month by 1% to 18,7 million tonnes (this compared with 17,6 million tonnes in 2019/20 production season).
The data released this afternoon by the Crop Estimates Committee (CEC) show that South Africa’s 2020/21 summer grain and oilseed production could increase by 5% y/y to 18,5 million tonnes. While this is still the first production estimate for this season, with eight more to follow, this could be the largest on record if it materializes.
