FAO/GIEWS - Foodcrops & Shortages 06/01 - SOUTH AFRICA (8 June)
Harvesting of the 2001 coarse grains, mainly maize, is underway. Latest production forecasts indicate a maize output of 7.3 million tonnes. At this level, production is one-third below the bumper crop of last year and well below the average of the past five years. The reduced harvest reflects a decrease of 17 percent in the area sown, due to low domestic prices at planting time, as well as unfavourable weather during the season. Poor rains and high temperatures in January and early February, particularly in the main western growing areas, stressed the developing maize crop. Subsequent abundant rains arrived too late to prevent sharp yield reductions.
Despite the sharp decline in production, the country still has an exportable surplus of about 500 000 tonnes of maize, as a result of large carry-over stocks estimated at 2.6 million tonnes.