The Citrus Growers Association says it wants more information from president Cyril Ramaphosa on how his government plans on solving the operational problems at South African ports. It's hoping that Ramaphosa will announce solutions when he delivers his State of the Nation Address today.
The association says if not addressed, the challenges pose a serious threat to the upcoming citrus export season. Last year the citrus industry exported a record-breaking 163-million cartons, sustaining 120,000 jobs and generating R25bn in export revenue, said the association.
“Due to ongoing operational challenges at the ports that were compounded by the rioting and violence in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng in July 2021 and the cyber attack against Transnet later that month, citrus arrived way too late in many markets — in some cases by over a month, which severely affected fruit quality and grower revenue.
“If this continues, the future profitability and sustainability of the industry will be under severe threat,” said Justin Chadwick, CEO of the CGA.
Source: businesslive.co.za
Photo source: Nl.wikipedia.org
