A JOURNEY THROUGH TIME

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CHAPTER 1
The use of sorghum as animal feed was in time researched well and documented.
In that market it was used mainly for processed food for pets, poultry and livestock.
However, it is not a stable market and apparently price is the determining factor in the
decision of whether to use maize or sorghum in animal feed.
For ruminants a combination of sorghum and other grains provides a product
with a nutritional value comparable to that of maize. However, food manufacturers
sometimes hesitate to use sorghum instead of maize because of the negative
effect that locality and the course of the season can have on the nutritional value
of sorghum, and because it may contain tannins. This, together with problems
with respect to availability of the right quality, storage space and other practical
problems, places sorghum in a considerably weaker position than maize.
About 55% of the sorghum meal and malt manufacturers are concentrated in
Gauteng and North West, followed by Limpopo, the north-eastern Free State and
the northern parts of KwaZulu-Natal. Because the bigger industries manufacture
sorghum malt as well as sorghum meal and other sorghum products, all these
products are normally distributed through the same distribution channels. The
distribution network stretches much wider than only the areas where sorghum
is cultivated and processed. There are also a number of areas in South Africa
where the distribution networks are not yet properly established, which creates
a potential for market expansion for sorghum products.
Quality and grading
Sorghum is graded according to strict quality standards as GM (GM1, GM2 and GM3),
GH (GH1 and GH2) and Other, and the marketing of sorghum is strictly controlled by
regulations announced in terms of the Agricultural Product Standards Act of 1990.
The regulations also make provision for the way in which sorghum has to be packaged
and labelled and prohibits the sale of sorghum that contains any ingredient that would
make it unfit for human or animal consumption.
The Agricultural Product Standards Act of 1990 and the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and
Disinfectants Act of 1972 also contain specific prescriptions about food hygiene
and safety standards of sorghum products destined for export.
Storage
Sorghum is primarily stored at a market-related cost in commercial grain silos,
where it is cleaned and graded. Usually any practical quantity of grain sorghum
is received and handled, provided the requirements of the Department of Health
are met. Like with other grain, the quality and quantity of the stored sorghum are
usually guaranteed by the storage facility and the owner can obtain a silo certifi-
cate that can be used in the trading of sorghum.
Only a limited quantity of sorghum flows directly to the various market sectors, as
only a few processors have sufficient bulk facilities to store it.
350
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150
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50
0
Tons (thousand)
1997/19981998/19991999/20002000/20012001/20022002/20032003/20042004/20052005/20062006/20072007/20082008/20092009/20102010/20112011/20122012/20132013/20142014/20152015/2016
Human consumption
Export
Animal feed
Graph 20: Utilisation/consumption of sorghum