Alternatives souring for citrus exporters

Lack of support for citrus exports through Maputo is pruning the choices for growers in the neighbouring Mpumalanga area, warns Mitchell Brooke of the Citrus Growers’ Association (CGA). This warning came after CMA-CGM announced plans to withdraw its Maputo to Middle East reefer service. “The outlook for Durban operations, which are

predominantly containerised, is not looking good at this early stage of the 2019 season,” said Brooke.  Maputo, which was the main export gateway for citrus growers in the Lowveld, fell out of favour when the logistics moved from breakbulk to containerised cargo. The port of Maputo did not have the necessary infrastructure to handle reefer cargo and larger container vessels. DP World has since upgraded the container terminal, installed banks of reefer plugs, and the channel has been dredged to handle larger vessels. However, growers

continue to use Durban, despite its shortcomings, according to the CGA. “The early season experience for 2019 of performance at Durban port has been extremely disappointing. “The stats show that DCT productivity is at an alltime low – the average ship Gross Crane Hours (GCH) is below 20 GCH (normally around 25 GCH) and the average truck turnaround time (TTT) is around 400min, with some days exceeding a TTT of 600min.  Other industries and shippers are being affected. “In some cases, the problems in Durban spill over to PE and Cape Town ports – when vessels have to skip these ports due to Durban delays,” he says. The early season experience for 2019 of performance at Durban port has been extremely disappointing. – Mitchell Brooke