Analysing yield trends in the South African sugar industry

Yield decline was perceived by stakeholders to be caused mainly by soil degradation, decreased investment as a result of unresolved land claims, and increasing pest and weed pressures, and suggested increased top/sub-soil liming, green manuring, in-field traffic control and soil and leaf testing as possible means of addressing yield decline. Closing the gap between current and maximum economically-attainable yields has the potential to increase annual industry production by approximately 32% (6.3 million t), and annual grower revenue by ZAR 2.6 billion (based on 2006-2010 industry production). It is recommended that research and extension efforts should be focussed on further understanding and addressing yield decline, particularly for LSGs and SSGs in the Midlands region, LSGs in coastal regions, and SSGs in the Northern Irrigated and Zululand regions.