The first South African grapefruit ever to be exported to the United States will arrive in the port of Philadelphia on the US East Coast today, with the fruit expected to bring a whole new eating experience for American consumers and experts agreeing that the category has very exciting opportunities in the market.
The arrival of the first grapefruit also marks the beginning of a new export market for citrus growers in the Orange River region of the Northern Cape.
The Star Ruby grapefruit is part of the first shipment of South African citrus fruit to the US this year. The shipment of more than 2,500 pallets, which is expected to arrive in Philadelphia on board the Seatrade vessel, Tama Hope, next Tuesday, also includes Clementines and Navels.
'The Star Ruby grapefruit grown in the Orange River offers a new eating experience which will change the way American consumers perceive the product,' says Kennith Dial, one of two inspectors from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) who are presently in South Africa to conduct the pre-shipment inspections of all fruit being exported to the US, in order to ensure that it complies with US regulations.
'American consumers are used to round, yellow grapefruit and the reddish coloured, oval shaped South African Star Ruby will be new to them,' says Mr Dial. 'The South African fruit, with the red flesh, is also very sweet and this will also fit in well with the palate of US consumers.'
The opening of the US market for citrus fruit from the Orange River is a result of a decision by the USDA earlier this year to increase the number of areas in South Africa recognised as pest-free areas for citrus black spot disease. The new deal means that Valencia types from this region will now also be available much earlier to the US market than in the past.
'Crops in the Orange River are much earlier so this enhances our basket of products,' says Joretha Geldenhuys, CEO of Western Cape Citrus Producers' Forum (WCCPF). The first Midknight Valencias from the Orange River will be available from the beginning of August and it is hoped that it could even be earlier in future years.
While South Africa has an excellent citrus crop and the early navels and Clementines are proving to be of exceptional quality, it is the introduction of the grapefruit that is expected to make the most impact.
The region where it originates from offers a climate conducive to sweet and juicy products. It is South Africa’s desert region, with the Orange River bringing the water which is the lifeline to kilometer upon kilometer of fruit orchards along its banks, stretching over more than 250km from Upington in the east to Pofadder in the west.
The Orange River is South Africa’s biggest river, crossing the country from east to west from its origins in the mountains of Lesotho, and eventually running into the sea on the West Coast where it forms the border between South Africa and Namibia. The lower part of this river is where a new fledgling citrus industry is now being established in what is primarily table grape country.
Amongst the first grapefruit exported from the region are organically certified fruit grown by the Spangenberg family, who farms Swartbooisberg between the towns of Keimoes and Kakamas.
'We have been farming here for 18 years and all our citrus orchards and vineyards are organic certified,' says Santa Spangenberg. Santa is also responsible for marketing the crop and for this purpose a grower-owned export company, Orex Export Ltd, has been established.
In the rest of the Orange River there is equally great interest in supplying the US market with citrus fruit. South Africa's leading table grape grower, the Karsten Group, which has farms along a distance of 250km from Klein Pella to Kanon-Eiland in the west, is busy with a rapid expansion programme at Mosplaas near Keimoes.
Mosplaas Citrus is an empowerment project that will eventually be partly-owned by the group's workers, with more than 50ha of citrus already in production and a further 300ha planted.
Andre Van Blommestein, managing director of WP Fresh, says the South African export community is excited about the prospects that Star Ruby grapefruit offers to the South African programme in the US.
'The fruit is truly exceptional, in terms of appearance and taste,' he says. 'It is sweet and refreshing and nothing like what the US market experienced in the past.'
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