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D-yield-gap Dictionary

Yield gap

The difference between the yield achieved and the yield achievable with best practice

All termsIntroduced in Module 3Open the Toolkit
An open dictionary on a farm office desk
Plain meaning
The difference between the yield achieved and the yield achievable with best practice
How to use it
Measure the student's expected yield against the best achievable in the area. The gap shows where better seed, fertiliser or timing would pay most.
South African benchmark
South African commercial maize yields are several times the regional smallholder average.
Country notes
Zimbabwe's average maize yield in 2025/26 was about 1.5 tonnes a hectare against commercial yields well above five.
Go and read
C3 Lesson 3.1
Calculate it
T-M1-03 Yield-to-Income Calculator
Library sources
LIB-A014
See also
Break-even yield, Extension services
Achieved yield compared with achievable yield, with the gap between themYield gapAchievedAchievableGap
Yield gap, shown as a diagram.

Introduced in C3 Productivity Economics.