Cape Town - Western Cape Minister of Agriculture, Dr Ivan Meyer, says that the apple and pear export industry in the province is seeing a healthy recovery and is positively contributing to the country's economic recovery and job creation.
According to the minister, the horticultural sector, hit by a series of droughts, saw a positive real gross income growth of 9% year on year in the third quarter of 2021.
“This encouraging news is supported by the BFAP medium-term projection, which indicates growth in the pome sector will contribute to employment. The deciduous fruit growers association endorses this view. Hortgrro confirmed that in 2020, the area farmed with pears was 12 913 hectares (ha) and apples 25 272ha, which is an expansion of 5% and 4%, respectively, since 2016. Furthermore, the apples and pear farms combined employ a total of 42 756 people,” said Meyer.
The Western Cape Department of Agriculture’s senior agricultural economist, Tshepo Morokong, said that on average, the Western Cape contributed more than 85% to the country’s apple exports.
“South Africa’s apple exports valued at R6.6 billion in 2020, grew by an average annual growth rate of 24%, and for the past five-year and 10-year periods was growing at 7% and 13% respectively.
“The provincial contribution to national pear exports for the past nine years was on average over 88%. South Africa’s pear exports were worth R3.1bn in 2020 and grew by 18% compared to the previous year, and in the past five years, the annual average growth rate was at 9%,” Morokong said.
Meyer said that although the ministry was pleased with the trajectory of the sector, he was concerned about the inefficiencies at Cape Town ports, including infrastructural problems, which the Covid-19 pandemic had aggravated. The minister said he was calling for urgent intervention, as these issues posed a threat to the productivity of the agricultural sector.
IOL