Maize for Feedstock May Get Review by SA Officials

The battle over using maize as feedstock for planned ethanol production is still ongoing as South African maize farmers push the government to reverse its decision to exclude the crop.

Maize was left off the list of suitable feedstocks by the government due to food security concerns when it unveiled its biofuel strategy in late-2007.

Maize farmers did see a ray of light, however, when the Minister for Agriculture, Lulu Xingwana, promised to change the cabinet decision if they could prove that surplus stocks could be produced. In South Africa there is about 8.6 tons of maize per year, a figure that currently meets demand and ensures profits for the farmers. The addition of maize on the market without an insured recipient could upset the farmers’ profit margins however.

"Maize farmers are business people. And like any other business people, they want to see a good return. Few are willing to pour in extra cash to produce crops without an assurance they will be rewarded for their efforts," says Wessel Lemmer, a senior economist at Grain South Africa.

The maize lobby insists that the biofuel market would benefit farmers, and be a boon on other sectors as well, such as the farm labor and the transport sectors.