South Africa mulls excluding maize as biofuels feedstock

The South African government might exclude maize as a feedstock for biofuels production in its industrial biofuels strategy, farmers union Grain SA said on December 5.

Weekly newspaper Rapport reported over the weekend that Cabinet had referred the draft biofuels strategy back to the Department of Minerals and Energy, as it was concerned over the security of food supply should maize be used as a feedstock for biofuels.

The union said in a statement that, while it supported a multi-feedstock approach for the production of bio-energy, it was concerned. “Grain South Africa has since the very beginning been involved in the formulation of the biofuel industrial strategy and has actively contributed to the strategy that must be considered by Cabinet. It is therefore with great concern that we take note of the intention by Cabinet to exclude maize as feedstock,” Grain SA GM Kobus Laubscher said in a statement.

The body stated that South Africa had the potential to produce as much as 12-million tons a year of maize, and that a “fairly stagnant” domestic market required about nine-million tons a year.

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