The South African stone fruit industry has recovered well from a challenging 2023-24 season, with volumes increasing and signs of improvement in the country’s logistical bottlenecks.

The 2023-24 season was marked by production and trade disruptions caused by extreme weather events, including storms that hit farms and fog and strong winds that affected the Port of Cape Town. Port delays, driven by a series of well-documented logistical issues, added further complications for exporters.

However, the picture after the 2024-25 season is looking a lot better, according to a release by the industry. The industry body Hortgro describes the season as favorable, with overall volumes increasing compared to the previous year. The main drivers for the increase were a greater number of nectarine and plum hectares coming into production, alongside a rebound for apricots after last season’s down crop.

Plums – South Africa’s biggest stone-fruit crop – saw a 22% jump in export volumes, with 13.8m cartons sold. Nectarine sendings rose 16% to 9.4m cartons, while apricots leapt 50% to 678,666 cartons. Only peaches experienced a downturn, with a 4% reduction to 1.6m cartons exported.

“South African stone fruit has continued to meet the market’s expectation for high-quality and great-tasting produce with a more stable logistical network,” said Jacques du Preez, general manager of trade and markets at Hortgro. “While consumers worldwide face economic pressures due to high inflation and limited spending power, the demand for fresh fruit remains steady.”

The season was not without its challenges. Although supply was much more reliable, growers reported delays due to wind in the second half of the season.

Nevertheless, the overall picture is positive, and Du Preez said a turning point has also been reached in the logistical crisis, despite some ongoing challenges. “As the collective fruit industries, we continue to work closely with Transnet and specifically the management of the Port of Cape Town to ensure a smooth logistical operation,” he said. “Late-season issues related to logistics have caused some delays, resulting in fruit ageing for the last few arriving vessels. However, improvements in the overall port operations were evident in the season.”

Exporters are anticipating further progress at the Port of Cape Town following the recent delivery of new equipment, which is currently being assembled and will be in place in time for next season.

The UK remains a key market for South African stone fruit, and Hortgro hopes to retain and ultimately increase market share in UK supermarkets. Sales of South African nectarines have increased by 18% year on year, with peaches and plums also up 9% and 16% respectively.