San Miguel –Argentina’s largest lemon producer –has signed a US$13.8m deal to buy a South African citrus farm in the Eastern Cape region, reports freshfruitportal.com.
In a statement released on the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange, San Miguel said the ‘Riverbend’ farm in the Sundays River Valley has a production potential of 1m cartons annually, and would be purchased through affiliate San Miguel Fruits South Africa (Pty) Ltd
“The ‘Riverbend’ farm has a surface area of 2,682ha of land distributed in several plots, of which 330 are planted with citrus with an average age of nine years and a production potential of 1m export boxes,” chief financial officer Alejandro Daireaux is quoted as saying.
“The agreement also includes water rights for 380ha which would allow for the development of a net area of 600ha of citrus, to double the volume up to 2m export boxes.
“The acquired land includes 1.951ha currently used as a game farm. The Board intends to sell the game farm during the next two years.”
The deal also includes machinery and improvements, along with the harvest crop as of August 1 this year, which will be harvested in October.
According to Freshfruitportal.com, the deal still awaits final approval from the seller’s board of directors, which is expected to take place on September 1.
Mr Daireaux said the deal was part of San Miguel’s strategy to become a leading citrus business player in the Southern Hemisphere, following on from previous investments in South Africa made in 2008.
