Usually a net exporter of white maize, South Africa is expected to import 140 000 tonnes of the staple grain this year.
This is partly due to a 29.3% drop in white maize production last year, the result of drought and low rainfall over parts of the summer cropping regions, along with “aggressive cross-border exports” of more than 2.4 million tonnes of grains and grain products to neighbouring countries up to March this year.
The South African Cereals and Oilseed Trade Association (Sacota), says, “While South Africa’s own maize production was sufficient to cover domestic consumption, the extent of regional drought was not fully anticipated.
“As neighbouring countries also experienced significant crop failures, their demand for South African grain surged beyond expectations. This unexpected export pressure exacerbated local supply constraints and pushed domestic prices to record high import parity prices.”
This resulted in a number of Sacota members importing maize and soybeans from Argentina, Brazil and the US.
The overall maize crop declined by 22.5% last year; the yellow maize crop was down by 15.4% compared with the prior season, leading to 413 000 tonnes of yellow maize being imported through Cape Town.
Official data shows South African soybean production for the 2024-25 marketing year declining by 930 000 tonnes, or 34%, to 1.84 million tonnes due to adverse weather conditions.
“Despite limited local availability, South Africa still exported around 334 552 tonnes of soybeans and soybean products, mainly to drought-affected neighbours such as Zimbabwe and Mozambique,” says Sacota. A total of 71% of South Africa’s whole soybean exports, numbering 105 950 tonnes, were to Zimbabwe.
Sacota says around 240 000 tonnes of soybean oilcake were imported last season, more than triple the prior season’s volume.
“Further to the soybean cake imports, approximately 160 000 tonnes of whole soybeans were imported from the United States across several vessels between November 2024 and April 2025.”
