Direct China trade makes SA fruit cheaper

Ray Smuts THE WORLD Trade Organisation's admission of China, world's most populous nation, must have all kinds of good news bells ringing for South African's fruit producers and exporters, not least the Orange River Producer's Alliance (ORPA). "China's membership of the WTO is hugely significant for us as we will now be allowed to trade direct, thereby ensuring better fruit quality and considerably lower logistical costs," says Gawie Nieuwoudt, chairman of ORPA, South Africa's second largest producer/ exporter of grapes. Doing business in China with its population of 1,3 billion people has been problematical thus far in that direct trade was confined to a number of US packhouses, leaving South Africa with no option but to enter through the 'back door' as it were, via Hong Kong. Also admitted as a WTO member only 24 hours after China was Taiwan, whose membership is particularly significant because its awkward relationship with China has prevented it joining most international organisations. Taiwan, too, has been a difficult trading country in that it has for the past three or so years applied a fixed quota for South African deciduous and citrus which will hopefully change for the better. This past season (2000-2001) has seen ORPA produce 12 million cartons of grapes - up from 8 million cartons the previous season - translating to around R850 million in foreign exchange earnings. As ORPA's third season got underway on November 12, what Nieuwoudt prefers to call 'Week 46', he was confidently predicting capacity could be increased to 15 million cartons, most of it for the traditional markets of the United Kingdom and North Europe.