The extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) provides some relief for South African agriculture, but farmers and exporters should not mistake the move for long-term certainty, speakers at a recent FairPlay webinar warned.
Moderated by Francois Baird, founder of the Fairplay Movement, the webinar brought together representatives from the citrus and poultry industries, as well as trade and economic experts, to examine what the Agoa extension means for South Africa’s agricultural exports and trading relationship with the United States.
US a crucial market for SA citrus
Jana Janse van Rensburg, market access liaison at the Citrus Growers’ Association (CGA), described the extension as welcome, although not the long-term certainty the industry would have preferred.
“We would have preferred a much longer-term extension, but we’ll take every gain that we can get,” she said.
Citrus is one of South Africa’s major agricultural exports to the US and ranks among the country’s largest Agoa export products by value. However, Janse van Rensburg cautioned that South Africa’s continued eligibility remains subject to review, meaning uncertainty has not disappeared.
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She said the government needs to work towards a bilateral trade arrangement with the US while addressing tariff and phytosanitary concerns. Despite the uncertainty and tariffs affecting exports, South African citrus producers cannot simply abandon the US market.
“Our citrus production is growing, and exports will continue servicing US buyers to retain shelf space and customer relationships, because these relationships can take years to build and are difficult to regain once lost,” Janse van Rensburg said.
For farmers, uncertainty over future market access can influence decisions to expand orchards or make other long-term investments. Exporters also plan supply programmes months in advance, while US-bound fruit requires specialised cold-chain logistics.
Janse van Rensburg said the industry’s priorities include maintaining customer relationships, improving competitiveness, strengthening quality, sustainability and traceability, and ensuring cold-chain excellence. She also highlighted the need to address the 12.5% tariff affecting South African exports.
Poultry industry sees limited benefit
For the South African poultry industry, Agoa has historically presented a different picture.
Izaak Breitenbach, chief executive of the South African Poultry Association (SAPA), said South Africa has not exported broilers to the US under Agoa. Instead, the agreement has provided the US poultry industry with access to the South African market.
Under the 2015 arrangement, South Africa agreed to allow 65 000 tonnes of US poultry meat to enter the country without anti-dumping duties, while South African products received preferential access to the US market.
Breitenbach said the latest arrangement remains a concern because South African exporters continue to face tariffs in the US, while the US retains access to the South African market under the poultry provisions.
“The South African poultry industry negotiated, to the detriment of the industry, an agreement that gave no benefits to South Africa. That is concerning to us.”
Izaak Breitenbach
The industry is nevertheless looking beyond the US. Breitenbach said it has invested in cooking facilities with a capacity of about 120 tonnes a week, creating opportunities to export value-added, cooked chicken products to markets where fresh and frozen poultry can face phytosanitary restrictions.
The industry is targeting markets including the European Union, the UK and the Middle East.
Diversification remains critical
Janse van Rensburg said the citrus industry already exports to more than 120 countries. Although the US accounts for only about 5% of total citrus exports, this represented more than 120 000 tonnes from qualifying production areas in the previous season.
“While diversification is essential, our success depends on both protecting access to established markets, such as the US, and securing growth in new ones,” she said.
New markets, however, bring challenges, including increasingly stringent phytosanitary, food safety and maximum residue requirements.
Prof. Diana Furchtgott-Roth, an economist and supply-chain expert who teaches at George Washington University, said South African businesses should recognise that global supply chains are being reshaped by geopolitical tensions, tariffs and changing trade policies.
She said South Africa should assess trade relationships on a market-by-market basis rather than relying on a single framework, while also considering opportunities to strengthen relationships with individual US states.
Andrew Hale, a US trade expert and former British civil servant, said South Africa should prepare for continued changes in US trade policy rather than assume the Agoa extension guarantees stability.
“Trade is regulated at the federal level, but there are certainly matters that can be negotiated at state level,” Hale said.
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