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Breeding and technology levy
The breeding and technology levy is well established now and has been implemented for more than
six years for wheat and barley and ± four years for oats and soybeans. Starting from 1 October 2021,
a breeding and technology levy has also been implemented for lupines to attract new and better
cultivars to the South African market.
It is very important for Grain SA to monitor the success of the breeding and technology levy. This
applies not only to producers who are paying the levy, but also to seed and technology companies
that need to invest. Both parties need to be satisfied with the working of the system and trust that the
system would have the desired outcomes. For producers it would be measured in, for example, new,
higher-yielding cultivars and technology that increases efficiencies. For seed companies on the other
hand, trust that their investment would have returns if their seed performs well is important. If the de-
sired outcomes are not achieved, it is important to be transparent about it and address the problems
or re-evaluate the system all together.
The success measured so far with the breeding and technology levy can be summarised as follows:
For winter cereals:
Two new companies have entered the wheat seed market.
26 new cultivars have been commercially released.
14 other cultivars are also in the final release stages.
Of the 26 released, 15 was for irrigation, three for the Western Cape and eight for the northern
dryland areas.
Of the 14 in the final release stage, eight is for irrigation and six for the Western Cape.
New technology: A BioCeres (HB4 gene) drought-tolerant gene is to be tested on wheat.
For soybeans:
Many new cultivars have entered the market.
New technology has been approved and is being commercialised – the Intacta RR 2 gene, which
is bollworm resistant. Corteva has also applied for approval for their Concesta E3 technology, as
well as a drought-tolerant gene from BioCeres (HB4 gene) that is being tested for its second year.
New seed companies entering the South Africa market, for example, Don Mario.
Greater competition between companies and cultivars creates a healthy environment for producers.
Annual meeting with SANSOR
Grain SA met with SANSOR on 19 September 2022 for our annual meeting.
Liaison with SANSOR on a regular basis is important to ensure that problems can be solved together.
At the same time, greater efficiencies in grain and oilseed production can be achieved. Important
issues that were addressed with the representative body of the seed industry include:
Market trends and production costs for the grain and oilseed industry
Maize seed exports to the USA
Breeding and technology levy
Sclerotinia on sunflower and soybean seed
Alternaria on sunflower
New cultivars versus new active ingredients
Maize cultivar trials
Possible alternative for thiram seed treatment
New breeding techniques/plant breeding innovation
Grow for Gold Yield Competition
Endorsement for the disposal of polypropylene seed bags
Certification of groundnut seed
INPUT AND PRODUCTION OVERVIEW