Stating the obvious about South Africa’s 2023 summer crop harvest

• 08 February 2024
• 0 Comments
• Agbiz
• Wandile Sihlobo

Ok, folks, these figures don’t matter much for the outlook; our focus is on the 2023/24 crop currently on the ground and looking reasonably good after recent rains.

Still, the South African Crop Estimates Committee had an important meeting today to review and finalize the crop production figures of commercial white and yellow maize, sunflower seed, soybeans, groundnuts, and sorghum for 2023.

In essence, South Africa’s 2022/23  summer crop season was excellent, and here are the final production figures. The Crop Estimates Committee’s statement summarized their view as:

“Comparing the final calculated crop figures with the numbers set by the CEC during November 2023, the size of the commercial maize crop is now 16,430 mill. tons, which is 0,21% or 34 775 tons more than the final crop estimate figure of 16,395 mill. tons.

For white maize, the recalculated crop size is 8,505 mill. tons, which is 0,06% or 5 035 tons more than the final crop estimate figure, and for yellow maize the recalculated crop size is 7,925 mill. tons, which is 0,38% or 29 740 tons more than the final crop estimate figure.

In the case of the commercial sunflower seed crop, the final calculated crop figure is 720 000 tons, which is 0,57% or 4 110 tons less than the final crop estimate figure of 724 110 tons.

The soybeans crop is 2,770 mill. tons (up by 0,53% or 14 700 tons), whilst the final groundnuts crop is 53 000 tons, which is 340 tons or 0,65% more than the final crop estimate figure. The sorghum crop also remained unchanged from the final crop estimate figure of 94 360 tons.”

n  Wandile Sihlobo, wandile@agbiz.co.za

 

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