As the country’s maize crop is systematically harvested, there are fewer grade problems than last year. In some areas, farmers are harvesting fewer hectares than expected, putting significant pressure on their farms and planning for the next summer season.
By Alani Janeke, senior journalist at African Farming and Landbouweekblad
Some of the farmers African Farming spoke to say although they have finished harvesting, they still need “a few more tonnes of maize” to make up for this year’s totals.
According to national statistics, about 36% of the country’s white maize crop for the 2025/26 summer grain season and 52% of the yellow maize crop have been delivered. To date, 95% of the white maize crop has been classified as grade 1, compared with 93% of the yellow maize crop.
Corné Louw, Grain SA’s head of applied economics and member services, says fewer complaints are coming from farmers this year about grade problems with grain delivered to silos. Last year, grade problems caused major losses for farmers, particularly in maize, due to discounts between grade 1, grade 2 and grade 3.
“The harvests are coming in more slowly this year because many farmers had to wait for their maize to dry out after a lot of rain fell over parts of the summer rainfall area in March, April and May. Furthermore, the first heavy frost only occurred at the beginning of July. Frost usually helps maize to start drying out ahead of harvest,” says Louw.
About 90% of the country’s soybeans and 85% of the sunflower crop have already been harvested.
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Yields in drier regions
In the Ermelo district and surrounding areas, between 60% and 70% of farmers’ maize has already been harvested.
Ryk Pretorius, regional representative of Grain SA, says yields this year are like a “lucky draw”. According to him, yields among farmers in the drier regions have ranged from about 3 t/ha to 8 t/ha or higher. In general, yields in his region are average to above average.
He is concerned about farmers whose yields are low for a second season in a row, as higher yields this year provide some relief from low grain prices. Pretorius says although there are fewer complaints about grade problems this year, better demand for grade 2 and grade 3 maize in the market is also contributing to fewer problems.
“There is a lot of uncertainty around planning for the season ahead, especially with regard to grain prices, which are putting pressure on farmers’ income.” He says weather forecasts for the coming season and expectations of a strong El Niño are also putting pressure on farmers’ decisions, as well as on the financing available to them.
Jaco Breytenbach, a farmer from Fouriesburg in the eastern Free State, says they are still experiencing grade problems “here and there”, but they are not on the scale seen last year. Lower-than-expected yields are also a problem in his area.
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Farmers are excellent planners
Jan Bothma, a farmer from the Bothaville district, says they are again experiencing problems with grade and very wet conditions during harvesting. An additional problem is maize that has fallen over across large areas. This problem is experienced with certain cultivars.
He suspects the government’s regulation prohibiting farmers from using terbufos to fight pests and diseases in crops such as maize may be contributing to root damage caused by pests and diseases, resulting in maize falling over.
Bothma believes there will be fewer problems with grade and wet conditions this year because farmers had to adapt quickly last year and make plans to cope with difficult harvesting conditions. “It’s definitely very wet in places here, but now we know what to do.”
Relatively good harvests further west
Further west in the summer grain production areas, Gys Olivier, chairman of Agri Hertzogville in the western Free State, says some farmers in the district have almost finished harvesting, while others are about 50% finished. “There are farmers who are recording average yields of 9–10 t/ha. This season is going better than last season. And higher yields surely help with the lower grain prices.”
According to Olivier, some farmers are still experiencing grade problems, but these are not at the same level as last year.
In the Sannieshof district in North West, farmer Derek Mathews says conditions are “not nearly as wet and muddy as last year”. The farm still has about 30% of its maize and sorghum fields left to harvest, but conditions are definitely better and he expects they will be able to finish harvesting earlier than last year.
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