33 / 37
ႅႅ
CHAPTER 2
• The
Oilseeds Advisory Committee (OAC)
which comprises ten representatives
of the industry and convened for the first time on 1 December 1997. In terms of
the OPDT trust deed the OAC had to be consulted by the trustees before the OPDT
made a decision on any request for financial support.
In terms of the trust deed the OAC was responsible for the appointment of
trustees to the OPDT, with the exception of the ministerial representative.
However, the committee’s primary function was to assess information and
research projects in the interest of the broad industry and refer them to the
OPDT for funding.
• The
Research Priority Committee
was an OAC committee that was tasked with
identifying research and other projects in the interest of the industry and sub-
mitting recommendations in this regard to the OAC.
•
SAGIS
, which is discussed in Chapter 3.
•
Industry forums
, born of the need of the various commodity sectors to liaise
with one another on common commodity matters after the Oilseeds Board had
been phased out. Among other things this included grading, health regulations
and research needs.
The following forums were established:
- Groundnuts Forum (1996)
- Sunflower and Soybean Forum (1997)
All the role-players in the value chain could attend the meetings of the forums.
Decisions were made on a consensus basis. If the representatives could not
reach consensus on a matter, the forum concerned appointed a technical
committee to investigate the matter further and submit recommendations to
the forum.
• The role-players in the industry regarded the continuation of the
technical services
function
that the Oilseeds Board had developed over a period of more than
40 years as essential. This included the application of quality standards, delivery
of analytical services and training of graders. This function was transferred to the
PPECB from 1 September 1997 with the approval of the Minister of Agriculture.
Oilseeds Board abolished
The deregulation process of the oilseeds industry was completed after the
acceptance of the business plan and the Oilseeds Board terminated its activities on
30 September 1997. A liquidation committee was then appointed to deal with the
arrangements for completing the Oilseeds Board’s outstanding matters.
Investigation of deregulation commences
Serious differences of opinion about single-channel marketing in South Africa
existed even with the initial investigations and the acceptance of the system. The
Commission of Inquiry into Co-operation and Agricultural Credit (1934) strongly
advised against it and the opinion was expressed on various occasions that the
system could not work in the long term. The so-called Kassier Report (1992) also
advanced reasons as to why it could not continue any longer and mentioned how
it linked up with the motivation for the initial opposition to the system.
In spite of all the opposition against controlled marketing, various forums repeatedly
pointed out what an enormous role the system had played in the establishment,
development and progress of the agricultural industry in South Africa. However, in
the end the drive for a free-market system triumphed and the agricultural marketing
landscape in South Africa suddenly changed drastically in 1997.
It appears that the factors and conditions that made the biggest contribution
to the relaxing of control measures, the ultimate abolition of the single-channel
marketing systems and the resulting deregulation of agricultural marketing in
South Africa came from the maize industry. The resistance that had built up in the
course of time against the Summer Grain Scheme and the measures introduced
under it, together with the increasing global move to free trade, played a significant
role in the process – more so than any other branch of agriculture.
Changing circumstances as a result of high growth rates in the South African
economy in the 1960s and 1970s (5% and 3% respectively), together with a