Figure 1. Spatial Distribution Map of maize Planting in the Southern Hemisphere for the 2024/25 Season (Brazil includes only the first-seson corn planting areas).    

During the current monitoring period, the maize production in eight Southern Hemisphere countries—Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, Mozambique, Mexico, Zambia, Kenya, and Angola—is being closely monitored. In Brazil, the second-season maize is currently in the sowing stage and has not yet entered the growth cycle. As a result, remote sensing technology is unable to obtain information on its planting distribution and yield at this stage. Therefore, this monitoring only covers the first-season maize in Brazil. The second-season maize is the main season for maize cultivation in Brazil, and its planting area and yield are of significant importance to the country's maize industry. We will continue to update relevant data based on the growth progress of the second-season maize and will release the monitoring results of the planting area and yield of Brazil's second-season maize in the next report to provide a more comprehensive reflection of the overall situation of Brazil's maize industry.

Maize cultivation in the Southern Hemisphere is mainly concentrated in Brazil, Argentina, and South Africa. Brazil is one of the major maize-growing countries in the Southern Hemisphere, with a large planting area, mainly in the central and southern regions. Argentina is also an important maize-growing country, with its main cultivation areas located in the Pampas region. Maize in South Africa is mainly grown in the eastern and central regions. Mexico, Kenya, Zambia, Mozambique, and Angola all have significant maize cultivation areas.

In 2025, the maize planting area in the Southern Hemisphere is 32.9 million hectares, a reduction of 4.01 million hectares year-on-year, with a decrease of 10.9%. This is mainly due to the combined effects of drought during the sowing period, the expansion of competitive crops such as sorghum, the trend of increased soybean planting area, and export policies and market factors. The maize planting area in various countries has shown different increases and decreases. Southern Africa has seen a year-on-year reduction in maize planting area due to persistent drought, and the main producing countries in South America have also experienced a reduction in planting area. However, the planting area in Mexico and South Africa has increased slightly year-on-year. Affected by drought, the average yield per hectare of maize in Southern Hemisphere countries is only 4,083 kilograms per hectare, down 0.3% year-on-year, with only Brazil seeing an increase in maize yield. The combined impact of reduced planting area and decreased yield per hectare is expected to result in a Southern Hemisphere maize production of 134.36 million tonnes, down 11.1% year-on-year.

Maize is not only an important food source for humans but also a crucial raw material for animal feed and industrial use. Therefore, a reduction in maize production may have a certain impact on the agricultural economy and related industries in these countries. Brazil and Argentina are major global maize exporters. The decrease in maize production in the Southern Hemisphere in 2025 will lead to tighter global market supply and may further push up international maize prices. As a major maize-importing country, China may face higher procurement costs, which in turn will increase the production costs of related industries.

Table 1: Remote sensing-based monitoring of maize planted area, average yield and production of main producing countries in Southern Hemisphere