The first South African specialised citrus reefer vessel of the season will tie up at the Port of Philadelphia today (4 July), not only marking the ceremonial arrival of the 2013 crop in the US, but also helping to celebrate US Independence Day.
South African growers will be somewhat disappointed that the arrival of the first vessel is more than ten days later than last year, although, they will be pleased that they could land more than 2,000 pallets – via containers – during the month of June to open the season and ensure that there is fruit in the market during peak holiday time.
The loading of the first vessel, Nagato Reefer, was initially delayed by a later start to the harvest as well as bad weather in Cape Town when it arrived. To complicate things further, the second scheduled vessel had to be cancelled due to technical problems and the third, Laponnian Reefer, was brought forward to fill the gap. It is, however, only expected in the US on 19 July.
“We are seeing a fairly open market with good demand, so the initial prospects for the season in the USA are good,” commented one exporter ahead of the vessel's US arrival.
South Africans are celebrating the arrival of the Nagato Reefer and the official start to the season, as well as US Independence Day, in style. A new mascot, King Citrus, has been introduced into the 2013 promotional programme as a key element of the South Africa citrus branding initiative.
King Citrus is, according to a spokesperson, a friendly lion and is a connection to a pride of lions and an accurate description of the pride South African growers take in sending premium citrus fruit to the US.
King Citrus will visit various US cities, stopping at well-known and popular spots. Its first port of call is Philadelphia’s Independence Hall on the 4 July, and In subsequent weeks, King Citrus will appear at iconic US locations in New York and Washington DC, as well as various supermarkets.
The Negato Reefer’s arrival marks the 14th season of shipments of South African Summer Citrus to the US. The programme began in 1999 with 50 tonnes and last year, citrus exports to the US. exceeded 41,000 tonnes. From July through to October, a conventional vessel with citrus from South Africa is expected to arrive every ten to 12 days, bring fresh supplies in what is a well-planned and coordinated export programme.
The first vessel carried, amongst other things, Clementines, Navel oranges – including the dark pink fleshed Cara Cara variety – and shipments of Star Ruby grapefruit, volumes of which are expected to increase this season.
In the past, early and mid-season volumes of easy peelers to the US, including the very popular ClemenGold or Nadorcott variety, have been affected by the returns South African growers earned in the UK and western Europe. Exporters say this year will be the same, with the weak South African currency against the British pound and euro further boosting prospects in Europe.
A further factor potentially affecting how much fruit will be shipped to the US is the threat of action by the European Union against South African fruit which could exceed its Citrus Black Spot regulations.
The Western and Northern Cape regions in South Africa, accepted as ‘pest free’ by both the USA and the EU, are now competing for supplies of South African citrus. The South African Citrus Growers’ Association (CGA) says that although these areas are significant soft citrus (46 per cent of South Africa’s total) and navels (27 per cent of South Africa’s total) production regions, they yield a smaller percentage of Valencia oranges (8 per cent of South Africa’s total), lemons (11 per cent of South Africa’s total) and grapefruit (less than 1 per cent of South Africa’s total).
Citrus sources say that while the authorities are sorting out the problems growers and exporters can simply not take chances with their shipments to Europe, and fruit normally exported to the EU countries now may have to find a new ‘home’ somewhere else.
“At the same time growers in the pest free regions may now suddenly have greater demand for their fruit in the EU and this may affect export patterns this season,' an industry source explains.
South African exporters, however, have emphasised the importance of the US shipping programme. “We need to build this market despite the fact that it is tough to service due to the sterri requirements,' one noted.
