In 2021, South Africa's annual estimated postharvest losses were 350,215 tonnes for maize, 11,404 tonnes for wheat, 9,312 tonnes for barley, 10,738 tonnes for sorghum. The highest and lowest estimated postharvest loss percentages are 14.9% for maize and 4.2% for barley. The costliest estimated postharvest losses in USD are for maize: over 77 million USD.
Within the value chain the majority of loss is estimated to be happening at harvesting/field drying for maize, at household-level storage for wheat, at harvesting/field drying for barley, at harvesting/field drying for sorghum. Within South Africa, the highest postharvest losses in tonnes occur for maize in Free State, for wheat in Western Cape, for barley in Western Cape, for sorghum in Free State. Regarding the nutritional losses, the estimated maize grain lost postharvest could have met the annual energy (kcal) dietary requirements of 1,359,652 people.
To view the list of studies used to estimate these losses, please see the References tab.
Top 4 crops with the highest production quantity in tonnes.
| Maize | Wheat | Barley | Sorghum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production quantity in tonnes | 2,355,586 tonnes | 267,392 tonnes | 219,552 tonnes | 215,887 tonnes |
| Loss % | 14.9% | 4.3% | 4.2% | 5.0% |
| Losses in tonnes | 350,215 tonnes | 11,404 tonnes | 9,312 tonnes | 10,738 tonnes |
| Financial value | > 77 million USD | > 4 million USD | – | – |
| % of national agricultural GDP | – | – | – | – |
| # of people whose annual energy (kcal) requirements could have been met by the lost crop | 1,359,652 people | 42,232 people | – | 43,853 people |
See full postharvest losses data tables with loss percentage › | losses in tonnes › | losses in USD › | nutritional losses ›
See full value chain data table with estimated losses in percentage › | tonnes › | USD ›