With a month left in the current export season, the boards of industry organisations the Citrus Growers’ Association of South Africa (CGA) and the Fresh Produce Exporters’ Forum have taken the decision to voluntarily close the export of Valencia oranges from citrus black spot (CBS) affected areas in South Africa to the European Union (EU), starting from September 16.

The decision was taken in response to the ten CBS notifications of noncompliance (NONCs) on South African citrus detected so far this season and the traditional heightened risk that Valencia oranges pose for CBS noncompliance at the tail end of the EU export season.

The market closure will be rolled out in a staggered approach, with the last day of inspections on Valencias in Northern regions being on September 16, while the Gamtoos Valley [Patensie], East Cape Midlands and Sundays River Valley will close inspections on the September 23.

Mandarins, grapefruit, lemons and navels from CBS-free areas will not be affected.

“While this closure will serve as another blow to growers who have faced one of the most challenging seasons to date, continued access to the EU market over the longer-term must be prioritised. This decision also shows South Africa’s phytosanitary CBS Risk Mitigation System being implemented effectively,” the CGA says in a statement.

It notes that the most serious challenge facing growers, which is having the biggest impact on their bottom line, is price hikes across a number of inputs as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

To guard against further price hikes and ensure price stability in the future, the CGA has been engaging with other fruit sectors on potentially taking control of their shipping, with a feasibility study expected to be completed by the end of September.

“At the same time, there has been a decline in real export prices across all varietals which is expected to continue for the next few years. This challenge has been further compounded by the recent unjustified and discriminatory False Coddling Moth (FCM) regulations passed by the EU, which will require exporting African countries to implement a drastic mandatory cold treatment for oranges headed to the region.

These new regulations recently saw up to 1 350 containers of citrus detained at EU ports for a number of weeks, which resulted in local growers incurring over R200-million in losses,” the CGA says. 

The long-term enforcement of the new FCM regulations is a serious threat to the industry, which is why the World Trade Organisation (WTO) consultation process recently launched by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) will be critically important, the organisation emphasises.

“The CGA’s position remains that the cold treatment prescribed within the new regulations is contrary to scientific evidence, making it an arbitrary and unnecessarily trade restrictive measure and accordingly contravenes international requirements for such phytosanitary trade regulations.

“The CGA will make all resources available as required by the DTIC and DALRRD during the upcoming WTO consultation process,” it says.