A citrus farm in the Western Cape lost 20 tonnes of mandarins after damaging rainfall and cold weather conditions destroyed their fruit. Instead of dumping the ‘non-market worthy’ fruit, owners of Fijnveld Farm, Sue Fry and her husband, Mark, donated the fruit to several food distribution organisations.
“We had some bad weather which caused damage to the fruit and meant that 30% of our crop rather than the expected 10%, could not be exported,” explained Sue.
She said that due to rains and cold wind, most of the leaves of the crop grew against the peel of the fruit, which left marks on the fruit.
“The fruit itself was not ruined, but the result of the rain and cold wind left marks on the skin, which reduces market quality,” she said. “The damage was only to the skin and had no effect on the quality of the fruit. It was unexpected, we had not planned another market and the local market is full of citrus fruits anyway.”
Happy to donate
Fijnveld Farm’s export market includes the USA and Malaysia. However, due to stringent export regulations and grading requirements, they could not export this season.
“it just didn’t feel right to get rid of perfectly good mandarins and we couldn’t just make compost with all of it,” explained Sue. “That’s why it was important for us to find a person who would help us give the fruit to people who need it because even vendors would not be able to sell it. I was happy we found Food Forward SA.”
‘We would do it again’
Sue said she has always been critical of farmers who dump excess food because there is no market. She remembered that she heard about Food Forward SA and decided to reach out to them.
“We have given fruit to about five different groups this year, with Food Forward SA being the biggest recipient. This is the first time we have had such a big problem with waste fruit,” explained Sue.
While the damage might have been bad for Fijynveld Farm, Sue said being able to engage with food distribution companies was a pleasant experience for them as these organisations made good use of surplus produce.
She told Food For Mzansi that should the situation arise again, should and her husband would not hesitate to donate again.
READ NEXT: Grab indaba tickets before they’re gone
Sign up for Mzansi Today: Your daily take on the news and happenings from the agriculture value chain.
