Limpopo Business 2016-17 edition

OVERVIEW Agriculture

OVERVIEW Agriculture Limpopo’s avocadoes and macadamias are in big demand throughout the northern hemisphere. Some of South Africa’s biggest agricultural businesses are located in Limpopo, with the province’s fruit and vegetables forming a significant portion of the nation’s export offering. This is particularly the case with regard to avocadoes, mangoes, tomatoes and macadamia nuts, the last of which is a rapidly expanding subsector. About 1 000 new hectares are being planted every year, according to the Southern African Macadamia Growers’ Association (SAMAC), adding to the existing 19 000 hectares already under macadamias. The Kruger National Park was the venue for the 7th International Macadamia Symposium in August 2015, an indicator of Limpopo’s status. Production of nut-in-shell was nearly 5% up in 2015, at 46 950 tons. About 45% of the previous year’s crop was exported, mostly to the USA and Europe. Growing conditions are ideal in the Levubu and Tzaneen districts. Neighbouring Mpumalanga is the other big macadamia province. There are about 450 farmers growing the nuts, but this includes several large farms, some of which have integrated operations in which the farms supply their own cracking factories. There are 14 cracking factories in South Africa. The sector employs about 4 500 people, of which 1 500 are permanent employees. The macadamia nut has high protein, calcium and potassium content. Macadamia oil is popular and has a high Omega7 content. Ground macadamias can be used as a healthy substitute for flour. Location Limpopo’s location gives it a strategic advantage in terms of providing fresh produce to Gauteng, the densely urbanised economic centre of South Africa. Cattle and game ranching occur in the higher and drier areas of the province, while the lower-lying regions are rich in fruit, tea, citrus and vegetables. One of the best known products of the region is Amarula cream liqueur. SECTOR INSIGHT Investment in citrus is paying off. • Two recently reopened agricultural colleges have increased enrolment. • The Mooketsi Market’s strategic position is boosting trade in farm produce. • Limpopo hosted an international macadamia symposium in 2015. • Fish for Iran may be a jobbooster. Within Limpopo, the Mooketsi Market has used its very central position to boost trade in farming produce. Although the town itself is quite small, the market’s location north-east of Polokwane and north of Tzaneen, with access to the northern reaches of the province via the R36 and R81 roads, has proved a winner since it opened in 2014. The market is owned by ZZ2, FGX (which facilitates transactions between buyers and sellers) and the RSA Group (which holds 30% representative market share of the fresh produce market in South Africa). The Limpopo growers from the Vhembe District in the far north and the Letaba Valley in LIMPOPO BUSINESS 2016/17 46

OVERVIEW the eastern Mopani District contribute 45% of the produce sold at Johannesburg Fresh Produce Market, Africa’s biggest market. They are also major contributors to the Johannesburg Fresh Produce Market. ZZ2 farms a collection of tomotoes, onions, avocadoes, apples, pears and cattle. It is the major brand of Bertie van Zyl (Pty) Ltd, and a world leader in tomato production, producing 160 000 tons of tomatoes per year. The company’s product range appears under 12 different brand names. ZZ2 owns large farms in four areas of Limpopo Province: Mooketsi, Politsi, Polokwane and Musina; it also operates in the Western and Eastern Cape. The company provides employment to 8 000 people. Westfalia, part of the Hans Merensky Group, is the world’s largest avocado grower. It also produces significant quantities of mango, litchi, citrus and macadamia and has three agriprocessing plants in the province. Avocado oil is produced in Modjajiskloof near Tzaneen on the farm Westfalia estate, juice and guacamole (avocado purée) is processed in Politsi, also near Tzaneen, and mangoes are dried and packed at the factory in Hoedspruit. Westfalia is the leading mango supplier in Africa. In Limpopo, estate farms include Westfalia (Tzaneen), Macnoon (Modjadjiskloof), Agrivet (Morebeng) and Goedgelegen (Mooketsi Valley). Organic avocadoes are also farmed in KwaZulu-Natal Province. The Westfalia Nursery produces more than 100 000 avocado trees every year. Westfalia Technological Services is the research division of Westfalia Fruit , promoting development of new cultivars and superior avocado rootstocks Relatively new entries into commercial farming are former cooperatives, and they have proved very successful. The two most active in Limpopo are NTKLA (with its headquarters in Modimolle) and Afgri, South Africa’s biggest agricultural company, which has its headquarters in Centurion (Gauteng). NTKLA is a shareholder in Venda Roller Mills in Thohoyandou and operates 10 grain silos, 23 retail outlets, 28 flour depots and one coldstorage facility. Crops The Levubu Valley in the north is particularly fertile with guavas and macadamia nuts among the crops that thrive there. Valley Farms is a successful enterprise that grows fruits such as mangoes and guavas, and produces concentrates, purées and dried fruits. Afgri’s soya plant at Mokopane (Nedan) has increased annual production to 195 000 tons of soya beans and 60 000 tonnes of sunflower, the result of a capital injection of R180-million in 2011. Greenway Farms supplies about 45% of the fresh-market carrots consumed in Southern Africa under the Rugani brand. A R6-million carrot combine-harvester is the only one of its kind in South Africa. The revival of the Tshivhase Tea Estate has not only given South Africans a truly local tea, it has also boosted employment in Limpopo. A number of brands have been developed, including Midi Gold which is the premium blend of the estate. Like the other teas, it is processed locally at the Mukumbani Tea Factory. Letaba Citrus Processors is a part of the African Realty Trust, which also owns two large farms: Letaba Estates and Richmond Estates. The Rhodes Food Group has a canned vegetable facility near Louis Trichardt. Cotton is grown at Loskop, North and South Flats, Wiepe and Dwaalboom/Thabazimbi. There are 2 855 hectares under irrigation and a further 326 hectares of dry land operations. Limpopo provides about 32% of the national harvest. Citrus Most of South Africa’s citrus and subtropical fruit comes from the eastern part of Limpopo. Soft and time-sensitive fruits, like avocados, are exported out of the Port of Cape Town and transported to that city by truck. Citrus is taken to the ports of Durban or Maputo. 47 LIMPOPO BUSINESS 2016/17