An Eastern Cape communal maize project involving 70 farmers is set to expand from 50ha to 350ha for the next planting season, with an estimated harvest of 2,450 tonnes worth approximately R10m, according to The Original Grain Company.
Source: Supplied
As South Africa marks Food Security Month this October, the Mcambalala Maize Project in the Eastern Cape offers an example of how investment and partnerships can support local food production. The expansion is expected to increase the area under cultivation sevenfold, from 50ha to 350ha.
At full scale, the expanded project is expected to produce approximately 2,450 metric tonnes of maize, with an estimated harvest value of around R10m.
For Ryan New, managing director of The Original Grain Company, the project demonstrates why food security needs to be approached as an agricultural ecosystem rather than as a single intervention.
“Food security starts much earlier than the point where food reaches a shop or a household. It starts with farmers having access to productive land, capital, knowledge, operational support and a reliable route to market,” says New. “When those elements come together, agriculture can create food, livelihoods and economic opportunity at the same time.”
Connecting finance, farming and markets
The Mcambalala project brings together several elements across the agricultural value chain. The Original Grain Fund provides planting-season finance through its Advanced Agricultural Product Purchasing (AAPP) programme, while The Original Grain NPC facilitates community partnerships, practical training and agricultural development. The Original Grain Company provides a route to market by purchasing the harvested maize at SAFEX-linked prices.
Together, these elements are intended to enable previously underutilised communal land to be brought into production, creating opportunities for participating farmers and the wider community to derive economic value from the land.
“The biggest opportunity is not simply to plant more hectares. It is to create the conditions that allow those hectares to remain productive and for the people working them to participate meaningfully in the agricultural economy,” says New.
The expansion is also intended to deepen community participation and create opportunities for skills development and agricultural livelihoods.
Source: Supplied | The Mcambalala Maize Project team with some of the local community members and stakeholders.
“What makes a project like Mcambalala particularly meaningful is that the community is not simply a beneficiary of the project. Farmers are active participants in the agricultural process, developing skills, gaining practical experience and contributing to a productive farming operation. By putting communal land to productive use, the project also creates an opportunity for the community to participate in the economic value generated through agriculture, helping to build more sustainable livelihoods over time,” says Megan Wadge, Program and Operations Director of The Original Grain NPC.
Investment beyond the farm
For many emerging and communal farmers, access to capital, skills, infrastructure, operational support and markets can determine whether agricultural potential is converted into production.
New argues that investment in agriculture should be viewed in the context of the wider food system.
“Investment in agriculture should be viewed as an investment in the wider food system,” explains New. “When you invest in farmers and productive agricultural communities, you are also investing in food production, local economies, skills development and the resilience of future food supply.”
Investment can also come from beyond traditional agricultural funders. Corporates, mining companies, donors and philanthropists can support agricultural development through initiatives focused on skills, productive land use, infrastructure, community development and food production.
The Original Grain NPC provides a platform through which companies and other stakeholders can support community-based agricultural development. Section 18A certificates will be available for all eligible contributions.
“There is an opportunity for organisations to complement traditional social investment by supporting practical agricultural initiatives that create tangible outcomes within communities,” says Wadge. “By supporting agricultural development, businesses can contribute to food production while also helping communities build skills, livelihoods and longer-term economic resilience.”
Source: Supplied
From planting to food supply
The Mcambalala project illustrates how financing, agricultural support, community participation and market access can work together within a farming operation.
“Food security requires us to think beyond the individual farm or the individual harvest,” says New. “We need to look at how finance, farming, communities, markets and supply chains connect. When those pieces work together, we create a stronger foundation for producing food today and strengthening food security for tomorrow.”
The expansion is expected to bring more communal land into production and increase maize output, while providing participating farmers with opportunities to gain experience and contribute to the local agricultural economy.
For New, the focus is on connecting the resources and partnerships needed to make better use of South Africa's agricultural potential.
“South Africa has significant agricultural potential. The question is how we connect the resources, people and partnerships needed to unlock it. Investing in agriculture today is one of the practical ways we can strengthen food security for tomorrow.”
