- Follow us:
- Our Commodities:
-
"For a long time, local soybean producers did not have access to the latest GMO technology and genetics. This will now change as the soybean industry found a way to fund technology and cultivar developments”, said Jannie de Villiers, CEO of Grain SA.
According to SANSOR, 80% of soybean plantings are planted with farm saved seed. Although legal, this prevents seed companies from being compensated for research and development of new technology and cultivars, thus preventing improved soybean seed and technology from entering the local market.
The Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries approved a statutory levy on soybeans on 22 June 2018, according to which seed companies can be compensated for their performance in the soybean seed market. The collected levy will be paid to seed companies according to their market share.
The Breeding and Technology levy on soybeans has been approved for 2 years with effect from 1 March 2019. The levy is R65 per ton for the 1st year and R80 per ton for the 2nd year. These values are calculated at 1.2% of the previous marketing year's average soybean price and will be payable when producers sell their soybeans.
The soybean levy will be administered by the SA Cultivar and Technology Agency (SACTA) and paid to seed companies according to their market share. SACTA is a non-profit company established to administer seed levies for all open-pollinated crops. Levies on wheat and barley for this purpose have already been collected and paid by SACTA for a second year.
"Grain SA view the approval and implementation of this soybean breeding and technology levy as a major breakthrough," said Jannie de Villiers. This will give our producers access to the latest cultivars and technology in order to compete with other countries. There is technology available that has the potential to increase producer’s yields with more than 10% immediately. This technology would not have been able to enter South Africa if we did not create these types of funding structures. It is therefore important to note that this statutory levy is a compulsory levy, and the cooperation of the entire soybean industry is called upon.
Ends
Issued by:
Grain SA Communications
Further enquiries:
Corné Louw, Snr Economist, Grain SA
086 004 7246 | corne@grainsa.co.za