SA citrus exports fall short of record, Iran War squeezes key markets

Résumé détaillé

South Africa’s 2026 citrus exports fell just shy of the record reached last year despite excellent yields as the Iran War, heavy rains and domestic logistical snag-ups all…

Yields and production aside, it seems that everything that could go wrong went pear-shaped for domestic citrus growers. When it rains, it pours.

South Africa’s 2026 citrus exports fell just shy of the record reached last year despite excellent yields as the Iran War, heavy rains and domestic logistical snag-ups all combined to create a “highly unprofitable season” of woe for the sector.

Citrus growers here packed 201 million 15kg cartons for export in the 2026 season, down slightly from the 2025 record of 203.4 million and well short of the initial April estimate that the figure would reach over 209 million.

That’s still a bumper export season but it could have been better, while soaring fuel and other input costs pruned profits.

“Volumes only tell one part of the story. This has been a very tough season. Nearly every risk factor facing our industry materialised, including a war in one of our biggest markets, the Middle East,” Dr Boitshoko Ntshabele, CEO of the Citrus Growers Association (CGA), said in a statement.

US President Donald Trump’s ill-conceived war of choice against Iran cast the biggest shadow over the sector, driving up key input prices, notably for diesel, which the CGA said was “especially punishing”.

One of the consequences of the war has been a decline in the spending power of the overseas middle-class, which is the main consumer market for the local citrus industry. The conflict also limited shipping capacity into the Middle East.

“Some ports were not safely accessible, and those that were, faced heavy congestion. Key markets such as Iraq and Saudi Arabia could often only be reached via extremely long shipping routes,” said the CGA.

Foreign port problems were compounded by domestic port malfunctions. Backlogs at Durban closed market supply windows, and the problems there remain a thorn in the side of the South African economy.

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