South Africa has officially become the world’s leading citrus exporter, narrowly overtaking Spain in 2025 with export volumes reaching 2.9 million tons.
The milestone underscores the country’s growing dominance in global agricultural trade, though industry representatives caution that rising shipping costs, tariffs, market access issues, and geopolitical disruptions continue to challenge growers.
Speaking at a packing house in the Sundays River Valley in the Eastern Cape, Henny, a farm owner and member of the Citrus Growers’ Association (CGA), described the achievement as significant for earning foreign capital and a boost for producers across southern Africa, including Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Botswana, and Mozambique.
“It’s very important just for earning foreign capital for South Africa,” Henny said. “It’s also a feather in the cap for all the producers and farmers in southern Africa.”
He highlighted strong logistical performance in 2025 despite major hurdles. The industry had estimated exports at 172 million cartons but achieved 203 million, requiring an additional 19,000 containers. Shipping companies managed to secure them amid strains on port and transport infrastructure.
“Everything worked well for us last year,” Henny noted. “It was almost like a perfect storm.”
However, ongoing challenges are mounting. The conflict in the Middle East has sharply increased diesel prices and shipping rates to the region, nearly doubling them, while transit times have extended from 10-14 days to 50-60 days. This has placed significant stress on fruit quality upon arrival.
South African producers are also facing intensified competition, particularly from a large Chinese mandarin crop flooding traditional markets, which has put severe pressure on prices. Henny warned that margins back to the farm will be much lower than last year. Compounding this are quality issues stemming from recent floods, heavy rains, and damaging winds in the region.
As a result, the forecast for this year points to lower export volumes than initially expected.
Despite these headwinds, the citrus sector remains vital to the Eastern Cape economy. The province exported 63 million cartons last year, accounting for 31% of South Africa’s total citrus exports. The Sundays River Valley alone shipped nearly 41 million cartons, a fourfold increase from 10 million cartons in 2014.
Henny pointed to substantial job creation, especially during the winter packing season, but acknowledged associated strains on local infrastructure. These include demands for housing migrant workers, road maintenance, and improved service delivery to both workers and communities.
The development comes as the Eastern Cape continues to establish itself as a leading citrus-producing region within South Africa.