IT IS NO LONGER BUSINESS AS USUAL

The year has kicked off and for many it has developed into almost the same pattern as 2013. It is wet in the east and dry in the west. In the south, the rain continued for a long period causing grade problems for some producers. An old saying of those who passed before us forms part of almost every discussion: "We can live with too much rain, but not with too little rain; a maize plant dies off about two weeks after the farmer has died".

With the writing of this article, most of the old hands in the grain industry have indicated that the western regions still have about two weeks, and then it becomes critical. I am constantly trying to think back to the previous season when it also started raining late and then became very dry. For the producers in the west it was a year they would prefer not to remember for a long time, but despite that, the country in total yielded enough so that we could even help others.

This brings me to the point of asking why there is now all of a sudden such a weeping and gnashing of teeth among the greedy buyers who, when there was a surplus and the prices of grain were low, did not want to buy. Now, along with the government, they are almost daily requesting that they be saved from their predicament.

It still remains Grain SA's mission to encourage surplus production and then "to clear the market" by promoting exports. Should the local buyers, however, sit on their backsides and miss out, they should not run crying to the government. We have not even started producing bio fuels and for a considerable time now, we have warned them, as our best clients, that it is no longer business as usual!

Grain SA is still assisting our chicken farmers to obtain a proper tariff system enabling them to compete fairly and create employment opportunities. It is rather disappointing now, after they have already obtained certain levels of protection with our support, that they did a sudden turnabout to lodge a complaint against us because we have, according to them, exported too much grains.

Really, men (and women), can't we just each grant one another a place under the African sun? Is it not true that the same arguments about protection of local production and job opportunities indeed apply to all?

On the other side of the farm gate, the year ahead will not be without excitement. We are kicking off with very low grain supplies that might possibly result in food price increases during the election. It could even lead to political instability. I can only hazard a guess as to how certain politicians might abuse the situation to once again bring back government control in agriculture. The onslaught against the free market will certainly become increasingly fierce and it is going to take a lot of skill to defend our case.

We will most likely have to take giant steps to get land reform on a road where all of us can at least see the end goal and date. Then there are also the challenges with regard to the restructuring of organised agriculture at national level. These matters can be exacerbated should the season turn dry in the north. Despite all of this, we retain hope that the Good Lord will send rain in His own time.

A definite plus point is the new, fresh energy brought to our industry by the young people and government officials (outside of agriculture) who give us courage because they have the will to make the country work. We cherish them like gold and work with them to ensure that grain production remains sustainable and that there is enough food in the country for all.

We can still survive without designer sunglasses, iPads and TV's, but not without food. It is therefore more than just a job to produce food for the country – it is a calling and we dare not fail just because the road ahead is an uphill one. Many of us and those who went before us have surmounted these inclines more than once. Take courage.

Jannie de Villiers, CEO