The perceived health benefits of garlic have pushed its price through the roof, highlighting a shift in market trends towards healthier eating habits.
And despite the meteoric increase in price, from just over R33 per kilogram to more than twice that amount at the Tshwane fresh produce market in March, sales kept steady pace with demand.
According to Jaco Oosthuizen, CEO of the RSA Group, vegetables like tomatoes and onions have also shown a sharp increase in demand, unfortunately at a cost to foodstuffs like apples and avocados.
Referring to the coronavirus (Covid-19), he said the pandemic had made a worldwide impact on the generally held notion that it was a good idea to maintain a good eating habits.
It’s also seen as the reason why citrus sales are going up.
“It has placed an emphasis on the value of health and the role of fresh vegetables and fruit in a healthy lifestyle.”
Apples and avocado sales were already recovering, Oosthuizen added, despite the impact of the increase in demand for citrus, onions, tomatoes and garlic.
An outlier fruit from a South African perspective, which is battling to market-correct because of Covid-19 and the crippling blow it has dealt the airline industry, is kiwi fruit.
Oosthuizen said because kiwis were airfreighted to their various market destinations, as a result of logistical impediments heralded by airfreight grinding to a halt, kiwi fruit exports had taken a knock.
He stressed though that industry was working with government to overcome current freight obstacles in a bid to reignite sales of the fruit.
