Barry Streek
Production of maize in the former homelands last year fell to its lowest level in six years.
Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs Thoko Didiza told Parliament this week that during the 1999/2000 financial year, more hectares of maize were planted than in previous years, but only 415 729 tonnes were produced, and the yield of 0,57 tonnes per hectare was the lowest recorded in the past four production seasons.
In short, the production of the major food commodity in these impoverished areas decreased, and increased the pressures of poverty there.
Didiza, who was replying to questions tabled in the National Assembly by Manie Schoeman (New National Party), said there is very little information available on production in the former homelands. However, the National Crop Estimate Committee calculated that production fluctuated from 430 000 tonnes in 1994/5 to 454E615 tonnes in 1998/9, but declined to 415E729 in 1999/2000.
Only in 1997, for the first time, did Statistics SA obtain information on subsistence and small-scale farming in former homelands and it indicated that “there was indeed a large amount of ongoing agricultural activity which was previously unrecorded.
“However, this sector generated little income by means of commercial sales, and was largely self-subsistent in nature,” Didiza said.
“Various agricultural economic studies, including some detailed studies, of, particularly, industries such as sugar and red meat have shown that the former homelands are deficit production areas – that is, consumption is higher than production. Therefore, almost the total agricultural production in these areas is consumed domestically.”
ENDS