Meadow, owned by Pretoria, South Africa-based Astral Foods Ltd. (ARL), supplies feed for farm animals ranging from chickens and ostriches to cattle.
While yellow corn is still being used, the difference between the cost of wheat produced in the province and corn shipped from other provinces is making wheat an affordable alternative, the Meadow official told Bloomberg.com. Corn prices in South Africa have surged after national stocks of the grain plunged 40 percent as of the end of November, the biggest fall in at least a decade, because of a surge in exports. "This is happening for the first time in roughly 10 years," the official said.
Yellow corn for March delivery closed trade at 2,570 rand a ton on the South African Futures Exchange in Johannesburg, and has increased 39 percent in the last six months while wheat for delivery in that month closed trade at 2,795 rand, a difference of 225 rand. Six months ago wheat was 940 rand more expensive than yellow corn.
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