South Africa's summer grains and oilseed harvest is in full swing nationwide, and some crops are nearly complete. Thus, the crop size estimates we have at hand are unlikely to change much and possibly represent an actual picture of the harvest. For example, this afternoon, the Crop Estimates Committee lifted the 2023/24 summer grains and oilseed harvest by 0,6% from last month to 16,0 million tonnes. Still, this is down 20% year-on-year, reflecting the severe impact of the mid-summer drought.

The summer grains and oilseed harvest comprises white maize, yellow maize, sunflower seed, soybeans, groundnuts, sorghum and dry beans.

The monthly slight upward adjustment of the summer grains and oilseed harvest size is mainly because of the notable uptick in the yellow maize production estimate, while other crops remained roughly unchanged from last month. This again confirms our earlier point that the data we have, which is the fifth production estimate, may not be adjusted much from now on.

This data illustrates the scale of damage caused by the mid-summer drought to the South African summer grains and oilseed harvest. Still, from a consumer perspective, South Africa is not in a crisis regarding supplies of grains and oilseed. With that said, there are upside risks to white maize prices, especially considering the potentially ample demand from the Southern Africa region later in the year and into the first quarter of 2025 when their domestic supplies are depleted.

Listen to the podcast for more information.

Podcast production by Lwandiso Gwarubana, Richard Humphries, and Sam Mkokeli

My writing on agricultural economic matters is available on my blog: https://wandilesihlobo.com/ Wandile Sihlobo website