DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE , LAND REFORM AND RURAL 
DEVELOPMENT  
 
No. R.  
 
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCT STANDARDS ACT, 1990  
(ACT No. 119 OF 1990)  
 
REGULATIONS RELATING TO THE GRADING, PACKING AND MARKING OF MAIZE  
INTENDED FOR SALE IN THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA  
 
The Minister  of Agriculture , Land Reform and Rural Development  acting  under section 15 of the 
Agricultural Product Standards Act, 1990 (Act No. 119 of 1990), made the regulations in the Schedule.  
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
______________________  
MRS AT DIDIZA, MP  
MINISTER FOR AGRICULTURE,  LAND REFORM AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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SCHEDULE  
 
Definitions  
 
1. In these regulations any word or expre ssion  to which a meaning has been assigned in the Act 
shall have that meaning and, unless th e contex t otherwise indicates - 
 
“animal filt h” means all animal  matter which may contaminate the maize , such as dead rodents, dead      
              birds including ha ir, dung and /or feathers;  
 
"bag" means a bag manu factu red from - 
 
(a) jute or phormium or a mix ture of jute and phormium; or  
 
(b) polypropylene  that complies with SA BS specification CKS632;  
 
"bulk container " means any vehicle or container in which bulk mai ze is stored or tr ansported;  
 
"consignment " means  - 
 
(a) a quantity of maize of the same class,  which belongs to the same owner, del ivered at any 
one time under cove r of the same consignment note, delivery note or receipt note, or 
delivered by the same veh icle or bulk conta iner, or loaded from the same b in of a grain 
elevator or from a ship's hold; or 
 
(b) in the case where a quantity referred to in paragraph (a), is subdivided into different 
grades, each such quantity of each of the different grades;  
 
“coffee-stained maize kernels ” means  maize kernels wi th a shiny brown colour that occurs anywhere o n  
              the pericarp of the maize kernel;  
 
"container " means a bag or a bulk container;  
 
"defective maize kernels " means maize kernels and pieces of mai ze kernels  that: 
   
(a) are shrivelled, obviously imm ature , fungi  infected , heat damaged  and frost damaged ; 
 
(b) have sprouted , includin g kernels of  which the shoot  (plumule) in the ger m is visibly 
discoloured;  
 
(c) have cavities in th e germ or endosperm caused b y insect s or rodents;  
 
(d) are visibly soiled (smeared)  or contaminated by smut, fire, soil,  smoke or coal -dust;  
 
(e) all matter that can pass th rough the 6,35 mm round -hole sieve;  
 
(f) are of subspecies other than Zea mays indenta ta or Zea mays indurata . 
 
Provided t hat - 
 
(i) irregularity of shape and size of maize kernels shall not affect the grad ing 
thereof;  
 
(ii) chipped o r cracked mai ze kernel s or pieces of maize kernels which are i n a 
sound condition,  and which appear in a samp le of maize, but which do not p ass 
through a 6,35 mm round -hole sieve, shall not be regarded as defective maize 
kernels und er these regulations.  
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(iii) oxidation -stained maize kernels, coffee -stained  maize kernels, pinked maize  
kernels , water  damaged kernels and discoloured maize kernels  shall not be 
considered as defective . 
 
“discoloured maize kerne ls” means maize kernels that are  as a result of envir onmental conditio ns 
discoloured on both sides of the  kernel, excluding , oxidation -stained maize kernels , coffee -stained 
maize kernels and pinked maize kernels ; 
 
"foreign  matter " means all matter other than maize, excluding , animal filt h, coal, glass , metal , plastic,  and 
stones; 
 
“frost  damaged kernels ” means maize kernels that  are damaged by frost  characteriz ed by two or mor e 
of the following:   
 
(a) a dull brown  discoloration  from the connecting tip  and/or; 
 
(b) an underdeveloped endosperm in r elation to th e germ; and/or  
 
(c) the peri carp is  blistered or flake d. 
 
 
“fungi  infected  kernels ” means maize of which the kernels or pieces  of kernels  are visibly inf ected with    
             fungi  and has correspond ing meaning with mould infec ted kernels : 
 
(a) are characterised by black, blue, green , yellow or white fungi growth anywhere on the 
kernel, or are c haracte rised by fungi growth underneath the bran lay er of the kernel;  
 
(b) are infected by ear -rot and are characterised by red, pink,  or brown discoloration s. The 
kernels are partially to complete ly infected.   
 
“heat dam aged  kernels ” means kernels that are as  a result of ex ternal heat or internal fermentation 
affected  with excess moisture and have at least one of the following characteristics:  
 
(a) Kernels or piece s of k ernels that are  amber, brown, da rk brown or black discoloured.  
 
(b) Kernels of which the germ has  dark-brown to bl ack discoloration .  
 
"insect " in relation to maize, means any live insect which is injurious to stored grain, irrespective of the 
stage of d evelop ment of the ins ect; 
 
"maize " mea ns the threshed kernels or pieces of kernels  of the plants of Zea mays indurat a and Zea 
mays indentata  or one or more cross ings of the two types ;  
 
“other colour maize kernels " in relation to - 
 
(a) white maize , means maize k ernels or pieces of maize kerne ls of which the e ndosperm 
as a r esult of genetic (characteristics) compositio n have another c olour than white, 
excluding p inked maize kernels;  
 
(b)         yellow maize , means maize kernels or pieces of maize kernels o f which  the endosperm  
               as a result of ge netic (characte ristics) composition have another colour than  yellow ; 
 
“oxida tion-stained maize kernels ” means maize kernels with a shiny light brown colour on the pericarp  
that are  discoloured from the  crown and not from the tip cap;  
 
"pinked maize kernels " means kernels a nd pieces of kernels of white maize of whi ch the pericarp or part 
thereof is shaded red o r pink in colour;  
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"poisonous  seeds " means seeds or part of seeds of plant species that may in term s of the Foodstuffs , 
Cosmetics an d Disinfectants A ct, 1972 (Act N o. 54 of 1972 ) represent a hazard to human  or 
animal health w hen consumed, including seeds  of Argemone mexican a, Convolvulus  spp., 
Crotalaria  spp., Datura  spp., Ipomoea  spp. Lolium  temulentu m, Ricinus  communis  or Xanthium 
spp.; 
 
“shrivelled or obviously im mature maize kernels ” means maize kernels with a thin and shr unken 
appearance;  
 
“sprouted maize kernels ” means maize kernels which have sprouted  so far that developing roots and/or 
sprouts a re clearly visible, or the shoot  (plumule ) in the germ is visibly  discoloured;  
 
"the Act " means the Agricult ural Product Stand ards Act, 1990 (Act No. 119 o f 1990);   
 
"the 6,35 mm round -hole sieve "(± 0,05mm) means a sieve  
 
(a) with a flat metal sheet bot tom o f 1,0 mm thickness perforated with round holes of 6,35 
mm(±0,05mm ) in diameter that are arranged with the cen tres of the holes  at the points of 
intersectio n of an equilateral triangular grid with a pitch of 8 mm; 
 
(b) of which the upper surface of the bot tom is smooth;  
 
(c) the frame of which is a t least 40 mm high;  
 
(d) with the  inner width of at least 200 mm and the inner  length of at le ast 300 mm, or, in the 
case o f a circular sieve, the inner diameter of at least 278 mm ; and  
 
             (e)        with a mi nimum area of 600cm2 and a maximum of 750cm2 
 
             (f)          that fits onto a tray with a solid bottom and must be at l east 20mm above the bottom of  
the tray; and  
 
“water damaged maize kernels ” means maize kernels with a light yellow shine from the tip cap in a band 
              around the  maize kernel . 
 
Scope of regulations  
 
2. These  regulati ons are min imum standards ap plicable to maize that is des tined  for sale in the 
Republic of South Africa  but does not include - 
 
(a) maize in retail quantities; and 
 
             (b)    ma ize for s eed production purp oses . 
 
Restrictions on sale of ma ize 
 
3. (1) No person shall sell maize in the Republic of  South Africa  - 
 
(a) unless the maize is sold according to the classes set out in regulation 4; 
 
(b) unless the  maize complies with the st andards f or the class concer ned set out in 
regulation 5; 
 
(c) unless the  maize complies w ith the grades of maize and t he st andards for 
grades, where applicable, set out in regulations 6 and 7 respectively;  
 
(d) unles s the maize i s packed in accordance with  the pack ing requirements se t out - 5 - 
 
 in regulation 8; 
 
(e) unles s the conta iners or sale doc uments , (as the case may be ), are marked in 
accordance with the marking requirements set out in regulation 9; and  
 
(f) if such maiz e contain s a substance that renders it unfit for hu man consumption  
or for processing into or util isation the reof as food or fee d. 
 
(2) The Executive Officer  may grant written exemption, entirely or partially to any person on 
such conditions as he or sh e ma y deem ne cessary, from the provision s of sub regulation  1: Provided  that 
such exemption is done i n terms of section 3 (1) (c) of the Act.  
 
 
 
PAR T I 
QUALITY STAN DARDS  
 
Classes of maize  
 
4. The classes of Maize shall be - 
 
(a) Class White Maize;  
 
(b) Class Yel low Mai ze; and  
 
(c) Class Other Ma ize. 
 
Stan dards for clas ses of maize  
 
5. (1) A consignment of maize shall be classified as Class Whi te Maize if - 
 
(a) subje ct to the allowable deviation in respect of other colour maize kernels that 
apply to the dif ferent  grades  of white maize, it consist s of maize  the endosperm  
of which is by  nature white in colour ; and  
 
(b) it complies with the standa rds for one of the grade s of white  maize set out in 
regulation 7. 
 
(2) A consignment of maize shall be classi fied as  Class  Yellow  Maize if - 
 
(a) subject to  the allow able deviation  in respect of other colour maize kern els that 
apply to the different grades  of yellow maize, it con sists of m aize the endosperm 
of which is by nature yellow in colour; and  
 
(b) it complies wi th the  standa rds for one of the grades o f yellow m aize set out i n  
regulation  7.  
 
(3) A consignment o f maize shal l be classified as Class O ther Maize if the consig nment does  
not comply with the standards for Class White Maize or Class Yellow Maize.  
 
 
Grad es of m aize 
 
6. (1) Maize of the Class W hite Maize  shall be grade d as WM1, WM2 o r WM3.  
 
(2) Maize o f the Class Yell ow Maize shall be graded a s YM1, YM2 or  YM3.  
 
(3) No grades are determined for Class Other Maize.  
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Standards for grades  and class of Maize   
 
7. All grades and classes of Maize - 
 
(a) shall be f ree from a must y, sour or other undesired odou r; 
 
(b) shall be free from animal filth , coal, glass, metal,  plastic ; 
 
(c) shall be free from a substance which renders it unfit for human consumption or for 
processing  into or utilisation there of as fo od or feed;  
 
(d) shall be free from in sects;  
 
(e) shall be free from stones which cannot pass throu gh the 6,35 mm round -hole sieve;  
 
(f) shall contain not more than one gram of stones, which can pass through  the 6,35 mm  
round-hole sieve, per 10 kg ; 
 
(g) shall contain not more  poisonous  seeds than permitted i n terms of the Foodstuffs, 
Cosmetics and Disi nfectants Act, 1972 (Act  No. 54 of  1972);  
 
(h) shall have a moisture content of not more than 14 per cent; and 
 
(i) shall no t exceed the maximum perc entage o f permissible deviatio n as determined  in the 
table in the Annexure for each grade.  
 
 
PART II 
PACKING AND MARKING R EQUIREMENT S 
 
Packing requ irements  
 
8. Maize of different classes and grades shall be packed in  different cont ainers.  
 
Marking requirem ents 
 
9. Each container  or the accom panying sales d ocument  of a consignment of maize sha ll be marked 
or endorsed with - 
 
(a) the cla ss of the maize ; and 
 
(b) the grade, in the case of Class Wh ite Maize or Class Yello w Maize . 
 
 
 
PAR T III 
SAMPLING  
 
Obtaining  sample  
 
10. (1) A sample of  a consignmen t of maize shal l - 
 
(a) in the case of maize delivered in bags and subject to  regulation  11, be obtained 
by samp ling at least ten per cent of the bags, chosen from that consig nment at 
random , with a bag probe:  Prov ided tha t at least 25 bags in a consignme nt shall 
be sam pled and wher e a consignment consists of less than 25 bags, al l the bags - 7 - 
 
 in that consignment shal l be sampled; and  
 
(b) in the case of maize delivered in bulk a nd subject to r egulation  11, be obtained  
by samp ling that consignment throughout the whole depth  of the layer, in at least 
six different places, chosen at ran dom in that bul k quantity, with a b ulk sampling 
apparatus.  
 
(2) The collective sample obtained in subregulation ( 1) (a) or (b) shall - 
 
(a) have a  total mass of at least 10 kg; and  
 
(b) be thor oughly mix ed by means of a divider before  further examination.  
 
(3) If it is s uspected that the sa mple referred to in subregulation  (1)(a) is not representative of 
that consign ment, an additional five per cent  of the remaining bags, chosen  from that cons ignm ent at 
rando m, shall be emptied into a suitable bulk containe r and sampled i n the manner contemp lated in sub  
regulation (1 )(b). 
 
(4) A sample taken in terms of  these regulati ons shall be deemed repre sentativ e of the 
consignment from which  it was taken.  
 
 
Sampling if contents differ  
 
11. (1) If, after an examination o f the maize tak en from different ba gs in a consignment in terms 
of regulation 10 (1), it appears that the conten ts of th ose bags differ s ubstanti ally - 
 
(a) the bags concerned sh all be placed s eparately ; 
 
(b) all the bags in the consignment concerned shall b e sampled in or der to do such 
separ ation; and  
 
(c) each group of bags with  similar contents in that consignmen t shall for the 
purposes of these  regulations be deemed to be a se parate consignm ent. 
 
(2) If, after the discharge of a consignment of maize in bu lk has commence d, it is suspected 
that the consignment could be of a class or grade other than that determined  by means of the initial 
sampling , the discharge shall immediately  be stopped and  the part of the consignment remaining in the 
bulk container, as well as the gra in that is already i n the collecting tray, shall be sampled anew with a bulk 
sampling apparatus  or by catching at least 20 sampl es at regular intervals throughou t the whole off loading 
period with a suitable container from the stream of grain  that is flowin g in bulk.  
 
Working sample  
 
12. A working sample shall be obtained by dividing t he representati ve sample of the consignm ent 
acco rding to the  latest version  of ICC 101/1  method .  
 
 
PART IV 
DETERMINATION OF OTHER SU BSTANCES  
 
Determination of undesirabl e odours a nd harmful substances  
 
13. A sample of a consignment of maize shall be senso rially assessed  or ch emically a nalysed in order 
to determine - 
 
(a) whet her it  has a musty, sour,  or other u ndes irable odour: Provided t hat a working sample 
of unscreened ma ize that i s ground in a grain mill to a fine meal may be used for the 
determin ation concerned;  and - 8 - 
 
  
(b) whether it contains a substance that renders the mai ze unf it for human c onsumpti on or 
for processing into or for ut ilisation as food or feed.  
 
Determina tion of animal filth , coal,  glass, insec t, metal, plastic, poisonous seed,  and stone content   
 
14. A cons ignment of maize shal l be sensoria lly assessed,  and a  sampl e of that consignment shall be 
sensorial assessed  and sorted by hand in order to  determine whether the sample cont ains animal filth , 
coal, glass , insects, metal, plastic , poisonous  seeds , and stones . 
  
Deter mination of p ercentage of foreign matter  
 
15. The percentage of foreign matter in a consignment of ma ize shall be de termined as follows:  
 
(a) Obtain a working sample with a mass of at least 150g from the sample of th e 
consig nment.  
 
(b) Rem ove all f oreign m atter from th e working sample and determine  the m ass thereof.  
 
(c) Express the mass thus determined a s a percentage of the total mass of the working 
sample.  
 
(d) Such percentage sha ll represe nt the percentage of fore ign matt er in the consi gnment 
concerned.  
 
 
PART V 
MAIZE KERNELS  
 
Determination of pe rcenta ge of other colour maize kernels  
 
16. The percentage of o ther colour maize k ernels in a con signment of maize shall be determined as 
follows:  
 
(a) Obtain a w orkin g sample with  a mass of at l east 150g from the sample of t he 
consignment.  
 
(b) Remove all  other  colour maize kernels from the working sample and determi ne the mass 
thereof . 
 
(c) Express the mass thus determi ned as  a percentage of the mass  of the worki ng sa mple.  
 
(d) Such percentage s hall repre sent the percentage of other colour maize kernels i n the      
consignment concerned.  
 
(e) Other coloured kernels m ust be returned to the  working  sample  
 
 
Determination of percentage of defective maize kernels  
 
17. The percentage of defective maiz e kernels in a consignment of m aize shall be determine d as 
follows:  
 
(a) Obtain a working sample with a mass of at least 150g from the samp le of the 
consignment.  
 
(b) Place the working sample on the 6 , 35 mm round -hole sieve and screen the sa mple by 
moving  the sieve 20 strokes to and fr o, alternately away fro m and towards the op erator of 
the sieve. Move the sieve, which rests on  a table or ot her suitable smooth surface, 250 - 9 - 
 
 mm to 460 mm away from and towards the operator with each stroke. The prescribed 20 
strokes must be completed withi n 20 to 30 seconds.  
 
(c) Determine th e mass  of the  defective maize kernels and pieces of maize  kernel s that has 
passed  through the sieve and express it as a percentage of the mass of the working 
sample . 
 
(d) Rem ove all defect ive maize k ernels from that par t of the working s ampl e remaining on 
top of the sieve and express  it as a percentage of the ma ss of the working sample .  
 
(e) Calculate the sum of  the masses dete rmined in ter ms of paragraphs (c ) and (d).  
 
(f) Express the com bined mass calcula ted in terms of paragraph  (e) as a p ercentage of the 
mass  of the worki ng sample.  
 
(g) In the case of  yellow  maize,  the percentage obtained - 
 
(i) in terms of paragraph (c), represents the percentage of defective maize kernel s 
and pieces o f maize ker nels in the consignm ent concerned, w hich can pass 
through  the 6,35 mm round -hole sieve; an d 
 
(ii) in terms  of para graph  (d), represents the percentage of defective maize kernels 
and pieces of mai ze kernels  in the  consignment concer ned, which can not pass 
through the 6,35 mm ro und-hole sieve.  
 
(h) In the case of w hite m aize, the percentage obtain ed in terms of paragraph  (g) represent s 
the percentage of defective maize  kernels in the consignment conc erned.  
 
 
PART VI 
MOISTURE CONTENT  
 
Determination o f mois ture content  
 
18. The moi sture content of a cons ignment of mai ze may be de termined accordi ng to any suitable 
method: Pr ovided that the r esults thus obtained are in accordance with the maximum permissible 
deviation  (± 0,3 per cent ) for a class 1  moist ure meter a s detai led in ISO 77 00/1-1994 based on the  results 
of the  72 hour, 103°C oven dried method (AACC Me thod 44/15A/198 1). 
 
OFFENCE AND PENALTIES  
 
19. Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with any provision of these regulations  shall be 
guilty of an of fence  and upon convi ction be liable  to a f ine or imprison ment  in terms of section 11 of the 
Act.  
 
COMMENCEMENT  
 
20. The regulations shall come into operation on date of publication . 
 
REPEAL  
 
21. Regulations published by  Government  Notices No, R . 473 of 8th May 2009 hereby re pealed from 
the dat e of commencement of these regulations        
 
 
 
 
 
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ANNEXURE  A 
TABLE  
 
STANDARDS FOR GRADES OF CLASS WHI TE MAIZE AND CLASS YELLOW MAIZE  
 
 
  
Maximum permissible deviation  
 
 
Deviation   
White  maize 
  
Yello w maize/  
 
 
  
WM1   
WM2   
WM3   
YM1  
YM2  
YM3 
 
1  
2  
3  
4  
5  
6  
7 
 
1. Foreign matter [regulation 1 5] 
  
0,3%   
0,5%   
0,75%   
0,3%  
0,5%   
0,75%  
 
2. Other colour ma ize kernels 
[regulati on 16] 
  
3%  
6%  
10%  
2% 
  
5% 
  
5% 
 
 
3. Defective maize kern els, above 
and below the  6,35 mm round -hole 
sieve [regulatio n 17] 
  
7%  
13%  
30%  
*  
*  
* 
 
4. Defecti ve maize kernels that  can 
pass through  the 6,35 mm roun d-
hole sieve [regulation 17(c)]  
*  
*  
*  
4%  
10%  
30% 
 
5. Defective maize kernels that can 
not pa ss through the  6,35 mm 
round-hole sieve [regu lation  17(e)]  
*  
*  
*  
9%  
20%  
30% 
 
6. Deviations referred to in it ems 1, 2, 
3, 4 and 5 coll ectively:  Provided 
that the deviatio ns are individually 
within the specified limits  
  
8%  
16%  
30% 
  
9%  
20% 
  
30% 
       
 
* No specificat ions.