Cape Town: AfricUpdate – News Desk
The Department of Agriculture has announced that South Africa has signed an agreement that allows South African farmers to export apricots, peaches, nectarines, plums, and prunes to China for the first time. The deal comes as the government scrambles to find new markets after the United States imposed a 30% tariff on South African goods earlier this year.
In a statement issued to the media on Wednesday, the department said, “It was the first instance where China has negotiated access for multiple stone fruit types from a single country under one deal. Minister John Steenhuisen said the protocol marks “a major breakthrough for South African fruit producers and exporters at a time when diversification is essential for our agricultural resilience”.
“This protocol is part of a broader strategy to make South African agriculture less dependent on traditional buyers and more responsive to new consumption patterns such as China’s growing middle class, which is driving demand for high-quality agricultural products”, he said. “The opening of the Chinese market could unlock approximately R400 million for us over the next five years, a figure which is projected to double over the next ten years. We are of the view that the inaugural 2025/26 export season can generate approximately R28 million and R54 million in 2026/27.”
According to the department, China’s demand for stone fruit has grown, with over 21 million cartons of peaches and nectarines and 20 million cartons of plums imported last year alone, volumes that exceed South Africa’s entire seasonal export output. The department said South Africa hopes to capture at least 5% of China’s stone fruit market by the 2032/33 season.
“Over the next decade, this protocol could create a market that will support roughly 350 new direct jobs on farms and in packhouses, and close to 600 new jobs overall once linked industries such as transport and packaging are included”.
