By Carmé Naudé Mariette Kotze, Hortgro’s Group Operational Manager, was recently appointed to the Perishable Products Export Control Board (PPECB), as representative of the pome and stone fruit industries. Kotze who has been working in the deciduous fruit industry for…
Are South African growers missing out? By Anna Mouton Global sales of organic food increased to nearly 110 billion euros in 2019. The positive impact of COVID-19 on the demand for organic food is expected to translate into even better…
Hortgro’s long-serving crop protection programme manager started his career with the inception of integrated pest management in South African orchards. By Anna Mouton. Although he was born in Johannesburg, Matthew Addison has deeper roots in the deciduous fruit industry than…
Deciduous Fruit Industry signs pledge to lead the way At the end of October, representatives from Hortgro Pome, Stone and the DFDC came together with the aim to align the industry strategy and to develop “an implementable, measurable, and future-focused…
Prepared by Brian Berkman, Tru-Cape Fruit Marketing The South African 2023 picking season of FLASH GALA ™, the fruit from the Bigbucks tree that has greater than 80% colour, has come to an end. Anthony Rawbone-Viljoen, a veteran grower at…
Hortrgro’s newly formed Economic Development Committee is gearing up to take transformation in the deciduous fruit industry to new heights. These are interesting times. By Gerrit Rautenbach Cynthia Mahlathi looks you square in the eye when talking to you. And…
By Kyra-Kay Rensburg Lona Odendaal has managed to secure 27 internships within the fruit industry, and more than half have gone on to complete graduate programmes and secure work within the industry. What is Odendaal’s recipe for success? She is…
The Department of Labour says the new minimum wages for employees in the farm and forestry sectors are set to increase by 5.6%. The new minimum wages will come into effect from 1 March 2018. The minimum wage will increase…
By Elise-Marie Steenkamp If you attended one of Hortgro’s events over the past year, you walked away with a Morsbag. You might be forgiven for thinking “mors” refers to the Afrikaans word “waste”. Unfortunately, Saffas cannot claim honour for this…
By Elise-Marie Steenkamp Rawsonville. – The South African economy has endured a turbulent few years marked by rolling power cuts, failing infrastructure, spiralling costs, and a volatile global backdrop. While there are glimmers of progress, both domestic and international headwinds…