OVERVIEW
Agriculture and agro-processing Managing water supplies is crucial for citrus growers. SECTOR INSIGHT African Port Logistics and Infrastructure is investing R300-million at the Coega SEZ.
Citrus fruits have been cultivated in the Sundays River Valley for decades. Credit: Sundays River Citrus Company
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ooking for fruits and new cultivars that can stand up to periods of dry weather is one of the ways that the Eastern Cape’s citrus farmers are tackling climate change. The Riverside Kat River Farm was purchased by the Lona Group in 2012 and has recently started expanding production of Orri mandarins, a fruit that was developed in Israel. The late-ripening tree is hardy and resistant to several diseases. The Lona Group has a national footprint and produces approximately 14 000 tons of citrus annually. The Kat River is a tributary of the Great Fish River. The Sundays River Valley is South Africa’s biggest citrus producer from a defined area. The valley’s harvest in 2021 was 30.5-million cartons and this is anticipated to increase to 40-million by 2026. The province as a whole is the country’s second-largest cultivator of citrus. The Sundays River Valley irrigation scheme was started in 1920s. Darlington Dam (also known as Lake Mentz) was built on the river and a series of canals were constructed to supply water to farms from Kirkwood at the upper end of the valley to Addo. More than 4 000 people are employed in citrus in the Sundays River area, with that figure more than doubling in the picking and packing season. Further west, there is about 6 600ha of land under citrus in the Gamtoos Valley, which exports about nine-million cartons every year. More than 100 farmers are dependent on the Kouga Dam for water in this region, but the dam has recorded consistently low levels in recent years and has to supply the towns of Hankey and Patensie and the Nelson Mandela Bay metro.
EASTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2022/23
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The provincial government put in place various relief measures for farmers during the Covid-19 outbreak. A sum of R417-million was invested in 107 agricultural initiatives in various value chains, including production in grain, red meat, citrus fruit, macadamia, poultry and cannabis. Small-scale farmers received infrastructure support to the value of R160.5-million. Getting small-scale farmers connected to agro-processing value chains is a major goal for agricultural policy-makers. This lies behind the creation of the Wild Coast Special Economic Zone (SEZ) near Mthatha. The 5 000ha Ncora Irrigation Scheme is seen as a model for the SEZ, which has attracted interest from AngloGold Ashanti and Exxaro. The Eastern Cape Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform (DRDAR) has several programmes to support smallscale farmers. The Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) supports agro-processing through loans and equity arrangements: projects that have received financial support include aquaculture, the production of dietary fibre from pineapples and bamboo products. The rich natural grasslands of the Eastern Cape have the
