PPECB stipulation comes in for flak RAY SMUTS A STIPULATION by the Perishable Products Export Control Board on minimum size for export fruit has attracted criticism from one of the largest apple and pear exporters. “Fruit is measured in diameter and you may well have a willing buyer in another country, so for the PPECB to stipulate a minimum size of at least 60mm for export apples and pears is nonsense and crazy,” says Tru-Cape CEO Charles Hughes. “If you have a willing buyer in the Far East for example, that transaction is between you and them. “Our juice plants get R600 a ton, so if we could export some of that fruit intended for juicing – provided quality is acceptable – income could double.” Total South African fruit exports were of the order of R6 billion last year, but Hughes expects it could conceivably be up by between 10% and 15% on both deciduous and citrus next season. “Apple and pear producers will earn about R2 000 more per ton next season compared to last when some 43 000 tons (of both varieties) were exported to the UK alone.” As to whether government has made any progress in removing stumbling blocks for access to various export markets, Hughes says: “They are trying but it amounts to one of those slow cogs of bureaucracy so I cannot say there has been any real improvement over the past few months.” He remains hopeful, but doubtful, that apples will be exported to China from next year, that populous land already having signed a citrus protocol allowing registered South African producers to export product.
