Capespan Exports is increasing its planted area of plum cultivar African Delight™ in South Africa, in response to keen demand from the UK market.
Capespan Exports, which has exclusive rights until 2012 on the über-plum variety, exported 7,000 cartons in 2007-08. According to the firm’s technical advisor, Michiel Bester, one top UK retailer gave “positively overwhelming” feedback, acknowledging African Delight™ as one of its finest lines.
As one of two companies with rights to African Delight™, Capespan Exports secured the contract from the Agricultural Research Council’s (ARC) commercial arm Culdevco, mainly because of its vast technical expertise.
Over two years, this expertise was applied in trials to reduce shrivelling on the cultivar. Recognising the plum’s potential in terms of worldwide demand, the company named it African Delight™ to extend the African theme of yellow plum range African Pride®. And the name also proved to be a winner with consumers, said Bester.
The red plum - usually a colour favoured by the public - is a good size, has great storage ability, which means the marketing period can be manipulated, and has excellent eating quality, with sugars at an unheard-of level for South African plums - between 16 and 20 brix.
Bester said: “About 20 producers have planted the variety, because they immediately recognised African Delight™’s outstanding prospects. We simply can’t keep up with demand. For the 2008-09 season, we estimate exports of 15,000 cartons and expect substantial export volumes within the next five years.”
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