Mzansi’s exports in quarter three rose by 8% year on year, thanks to a collaboration between various agricultural stakeholders. The latest quarter’s exports of 3,4 billion US dollar put the country’s food and beverages exports for the first three quarters of this year at $9,6 billion.
According to the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz), the top exportable products were citrus, maize, wine, apples and pears, nuts, sugar, fruit juices and wool, among other products.
Agbiz chief economist Wandile Sihlobo wrote in his weekly note on agricultural markets that they expected some of these products to continue dominating the export list in the fourth quarter of the year.
“The major factors underpinning this robust export value are the sizeable agricultural output in the 2020/21 production season, combined with general solid global demand, even at higher agricultural commodity prices,” Sihlobo said.
According to the economist, ample agricultural and beverages exports are still ongoing since the start of the final quarter of the year.
Hence, he believes that South Africa could surpass 2020’s agriculture exports of $10,2 billion, which was the second-highest on record and could even pass the record exports of 2018, which was $10,6 billion.
“At the core of this success lies the continued coordination that organised agribusiness and agriculture, Transnet and various ports operating and truckers’ groups have had since the July unrest,” Sihlobo noted.
He also pointed out that the need to expand South Africa’s agricultural export markets beyond the current reach, along with concerns about logistical interruptions, were the two major running themes in various interactions Agbiz had with agribusinesses last month.
China, Japan, India, Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh are some of the markets in which the agribusinesses are interested in expanding their presence.
Potential ASF outbreak in the Eastern Cape
African swine fever (ASF) continues to spread in parts of the Western Cape with another outbreak suspected in the Eastern Cape.
Pig farmers in the Western Cape are on high alert following a series of ASF outbreaks this year. According to the South African Pork Producers’ Organisation (SAPPO), all producers, whether small or commercial, are taking biosecurity seriously.
Some, Dr Cilliers Louw of SAPPO in the Western Cape said, are taking it serious for the very first time.
“Abattoirs are applying strict rules with regard to ASF and producers have to adhere to them if they want to have their pigs slaughtered. Producers are upgrading their biosecurity measures across the board and are starting to ask the right questions,” he said.
There have been continuous deaths of pigs in the Eastern Cape as well. While it is still unconfirmed, ASF is suspected to be the cause of many pigs dying in small farmers’ herds in the province.
This, according to Thembelihle Ngiba, SAPPO business development manager who mentors small farmers in the Eastern Cape. “The department of agriculture, land reform and rural development’s state veterinary service has been informed and has yet to confirm if the deaths were caused by ASF.”
ALSO READ: SAPPO reports largest ASF outbreak on record
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