There is a growing trend of South African mandarin growers aggressively establishing new orchards under netting, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS) recently reported. The practice has improved water efficiency, yields and the overall quality of fruit, USDA/FAS says in its semi-annual South Africa citrus report.
USDA/FAS says the production of tangerines/mandarins in South Africa is anticipated to continue its aggressive growth in 2021–22, surging by 12% compared to the prior year, to 660,000 MT. The increased production is based on the rise in area planted, improvement in yields, conducive weather conditions and the high level of new plantings in the past years coming into full production. Improved irrigation dam levels in the Western Cape province also helped.
AREA PLANTED
The area planted to tangerines/mandarins (soft citrus) increased exponentially over the past 10 years, driven by increased global demand for seedless soft citrus and relatively higher profit margins compared to other citrus types. This positive trend is expected to continue in 2021–22, with the area planted to tangerines/mandarins growing by 7% from the prior year to 28,000 hectares.
The Western Cape province is the predominant producer of soft citrus, with 37% of total production, followed by the Limpopo (28%) and Eastern Cape (25%) provinces.
CONSUMPTION
The consumption of tangerines/mandarins is estimated to grow by 14% in 2021–22 compared to the prior year, to 33,000 MT. Local consumption of tangerines/mandarins is much smaller than oranges, as the industry prioritizes export markets for soft citrus and only supplies surplus fruit to the local market.
TRADE
The export of tangerines/mandarins is estimated to surge by 12% in 2021–22 compared to the prior year, to a record level of 570,000 MT. The European Union and the United Kingdom account for 45% of total South African exports, followed by the United States (9%), United Arab Emirates (8%) and Russia (8%). The Russia-Ukraine conflict is forcing the local industry to find alternative export opportunities, especially in the growing markets of Asia, the Middle East and the United States.
Imports of tangerines/mandarins in South Africa will remain flat in 2021–22 at 3,000 MT. South Africa only imports minimal volumes of citrus to satisfy off-season demand.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service