Increase on grain ha planted for current season

Although the good rains of the 2013/2014 summer season have made a significant contribution to what is expected to be a good year for grain farmers, the industry has, over the past decade, succeeded in taking the sting out of weather as a production factor, said Marthinus Loock, senior manager: Agribusiness for Standard Bank.

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According to the department of agriculture’s Crop Estimates Report, while there was only a slight increase (0,5%) on the previous year in the hectares planted to grain in the 2013 /2014 season, a significant increase (11%) in output is expected this year – between 11,7 million and 13 million tons.

Loock said that, historically, a good season used to carry negative connotations, with over-supply pushing prices down. “However, the grain industry has proactively developed its export markets with a view not only to giving producers more outlets for their grain, but also supporting higher prices. All our excess grain is exported now, eliminating domestic surpluses and ensuring that farmers are well rewarded for their efforts,” he said in a press statement.

The current weak rand supports export parity prices and Loock recommended that producers use the confluence of positive circumstances to move towards precision farming.

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“For those farmers who have done holistic farm planning in order to optimise the potential of good land and minimise losses from unproductive land, good rain simply becomes a bonus on top of what was going to be a good yield anyway.”