Maize farmers expected to plant more this year with better rains on the cards

SA is likely to have a maize surplus next year as favourable weather encourages farmers to increase planting after the previous season’s drought, the head of the largest grain producer group said on Tuesday.

A good maize harvest would help lower food prices, which in turn could help contain consumer inflation.

The El Nino weather pattern, which ended in May, brought severe drought last season and led to the loss of livestock and the staple maize crop, pushing up food prices.

"The positive thing is that we are starting with a lot more moisture in the soil than last year. The start for the season is very positive although there are some dry patches," said Jannie de Villiers, CE of Grain SA. "With the conditions as they are at the moment, we can expect a surplus," he said.

SA needs 10.5-million tons of maize a year to meet local consumption needs.

The South African Weather Services said on November 1 the country was more likely to have a wetter early summer season, from November to January, the maize-planting season.

The government has pegged the 2016 maize harvest at 7.5-million tons or 25% less than the 9.95-million tons reaped the previous year but higher than initial expectations when the drought was really biting.

The government’s crop estimates committee said in October that maize farmers intended to plant 2.463-million hectares of the e grain in the 2017 season, 26.5% more than the previous season.

Commenting on plantings in key maize-growing areas, De Villiers said about 85% of the area had been planted in the eastern Mpumalanga province, which accounts for 40% of the national harvest.

Farmers in North West, another key maize-growing area, are expected to start planting this week, and circumstances "looked good", he said.

The Reserve Bank has expressed concern about the effect of higher food prices on inflation. The bank will decide on interest rates next week.

The latest figures show consumer inflation was 6.1% in September, just above the Bank’s inflation target range of 3%-6%.

Reuters