agri benchmark
Cash Crop Conference 2012
How does South African Maize production
compare to the USA?
2
1) Presentation objective
2) An overview on South African farms
3) An overview on the farm situated in Iowa, United States
4) The benchmark of physical data:
• Yield
• Cropping systems
• Cost comparisons
• Productivity indicators
Presentation Overview
3
• To illustrate how South African farms compare to the
USA
• Although several variables could influence production
conditions, the objective is to only illustrate a basic
benchmark with the assumption that everything else is
held constant
• The benchmark could give an indication whether SA
farms are competitive internationally on a per ton
Presentation objective
Overview on South African farms
South African maize
farms in agri
benchmark network
ZA1200NW
ZA600KZN
ZA1600EFS
ZA1700WFS
ZA1800NC
ZA1600NFS
Overview on South African farms
Farm name & province Hectares (Arable) Crops Tillage system Soil Type Rainfall Total kW
ZA1200NW, North West 1 024 ha Maize & Sunflower Intensive Sandy loam 550mm 606
ZA1700WFS, Western Free State 1 680 ha Maize & Wheat Conservation Sandy loam 450mm 898
ZA1600NFS, Northern Free State 1 490 ha Maize & Sunflower Conservation Sandy loam 450mm 1095
ZA1800NC, Northern Cape (double crop irrigation) 1 818 ha Maize & Wheat No-till Sandy loam 250mm 914
Overview: Farm situated in Iowa, United States
Source: Wikitravel, 2012
North Central Iowa
• Farm consist of 688 hectares arable
land
• Corn & soybean production (50:50)
• Conservation tillage approach with
reduced stubble breaking and mulch
seed
• Strategy: Increase marketing skills &
capture more of the value of the bio-
fuels industry
• Soils: Loam - Silt clay loam
• Climate: Continental with an annual
rainfall of 888 l/m2
• Land cost: $20 000 (R150 000) per ha &
rent, $670 (R5 025) per ha
• Average field size: 60 Acres (24.2 Ha)
• Average distance of fields: 6km
8
• Yield
• Cropping systems
• Graph on seed & fertilizer application
• Plant protection
• Cost comparisons
• Productivity:
• Nitrogen
• Seed application
Benchmark: SA & USA
Yield
0.0
2.0
4.0
6.0
8.0
10.0
12.0
14.0
16.0
200
9
201
0
201
1
Av
era
ge
200
9
201
0
201
1
Av
era
ge
200
9
2010
201
1
Av
era
ge
200
9
201
0
201
1
Av
era
ge
200
9
201
0
201
1
Av
era
ge
201
1
US700IA ZA1200NW ZA1700WFS ZA1700WFS ZA1800NC ZA1600NFS
To
n / H
a
Irrigation
Irrigation
10
• Cannot make a simple yield comparison by not
looking at the drivers behind yield, therefore:
• What are the key drivers behind yield?
• Respective production system / practise
• Seed and fertilizer management
• Plant protection
• Availability of water
Benchmark: SA & USA
Seed comparison
0.00
50.00
100.00
150.00
200.00
250.00
300.00
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
US700IA ZA1200NW ZA1700WFS ZA1600NFS ZA1800NC
US
D /
ha
t / h
a &
kg
/ h
a
Seed cost (USD/ha) Yield (t/ha)
The 2012 large-scale, on-farm trials, will be taking place with
approximately 250 growers on up to 10,000 acres across the
Western Great Plains, the product's target launch area.
The drought-tolerant trait is part of Monsanto's Yield and Stress
collaboration in plant biotechnology with Germany-based BASF.
Pioneer is integrating the Plenish™ high oleic soybean trait into elite
Pioneer® brand Y Series genetics in a broad range of maturities and
agronomic packages, providing the right product for the right acre,
and market.
Keep the stability, lose the trans fat
Client Focused GMO
Traits
http://www.vistivegold.com/Pages/Home.aspx
http://www.plenish.com/default.aspx
Fertilizer application
164
65 85
120
318
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
US700IA ZA1200NW ZA1700WFS ZA1600NFS ZA1800NC
US
D /
ha
kg
/ h
a
N P K Fertilizer cost (USD/ha)
US dryland nitrogen application much more
than SA dryland farms. Fertilizer cost per
hectare is cheaper in the US. The amount of
Nitrogen applied in the Northern Cape is
substantially higher than in other areas.
Combined annual fertilizer sales in Hamilton and Hardin counties
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005
Year
Fer
tiliz
er s
ales
(m
illion
pou
nds)
Nitrogen
Phosphorus
Potassium
Plant protection
64.35
25.23
71.48
63.73
67.57
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
US700IA ZA1200NW ZA1700WFS ZA1600NFS ZA1800NC
US
D /
ha
Plant protection (USD/ha)
2 Herbicides applications
Production systems & machinery
0.79
0.55
0.67
1.00
0.73
0.00
200.00
400.00
600.00
800.00
1000.00
1200.00
1400.00
1600.00
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
1.20
US700IA ZA1200NW ZA1700WFS ZA1800NC ZA1600NFS
To
tal k
W
kW
/ h
a
SUM (kW) kW/ha
NO TILL CONSERVATION CONSERVATION INTENSIVE CONSERVATION
18
• Given our previous slides, it can be argued that the
drivers behind yield may differ significantly & therefore
makes it difficult to benchmark production systems.
• However, it is important to determine whether South
African maize can compete internationally due to the fact
that we compete for the same export markets
• The question: Are we cost effective & competitive?
• The following slides will focus on cost comparisons: USD
per ton
Benchmark: SA & USA
20
1) US seed cost were very high on a per hectare basis, but
relatively on the same level on a per ton basis.
2) The high nitrogen cost for ZA farms on a per hectare
basis lead to high per ton cost as well. Yields are not high
enough to compensate for the increased expenditure on
nitrogen cost. The US farm also benefits from the fact that
they have soybeans part of their rotation.
3) Crop protection seems to be as well fairly expensive on
a per ton basis for ZA farms.
Cost comparisons: Direct costs
25
• Long run seed cost will merge
• Fertilizer: US continue to be lower due to distribution
system
• US subsidies will decline for US farmers
• Soils: Higher organic content
• Yields: Continuous yield increases in the US due to
hybrids & genetics
• Prices for maize will remain higher due to lower
transportation cost & domestic demand in the US
(Ethanol & Feed Consumption)
General conclusions:
31
Divan van der Westhuizen
Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP)
Email: [email protected]
www.bfap.co.za
Kelvin Leibold
Farm and Ag Business Mgt. Specialist
Phone: 641-648-4850
E-mail: [email protected]
Contact: