Hortgro’s Actions Over Persistent Failures at Port of Cape Town

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Hortgro, representing the South African deciduous fruit (pome and stone) industry, has escalated its operational engagement with Transnet and is considering formal legal remedies due to ongoing operational failures at the Port of Cape Town.

This follows sustained, material underperformance at the Cape Town Container Terminal (CTCT) since the start of the season, which continues to cause significant and measurable harm to the country’s export economy. Hortgro, representing the pome and stone industries, is currently quantifying the direct and indirect losses of income to producers, arising from unacceptable levels of unsound fruit in markets, discounted prices, additional expenses incurred to divert to other ports, and the forced utilisation of conventional vessels.

While the industry recognises the commitment and effort of operational teams working under extremely difficult circumstances, the persistence and scale of performance failures at CTCT point to deep-seated structural weaknesses that extend beyond isolated incidents or external disruptions, such as adverse weather.

Over many years, Hortgro has engaged constructively and in good faith with Transnet and port management, including a deliberate and disciplined commitment not to pursue media engagement while solutions were addressed internally. Despite these efforts, productivity has not recovered to globally competitive or operationally reliable levels, despite substantial new equipment investment following more than a decade of capital underspend and readiness assurances provided ahead of the season. Global productivity standards range from 25–30 GHC (gross crane movements per hour), while CTCT remains below 20.

The commercial consequences of this sustained underperformance are now severe, and options to recoup lost income and cover additional costs are being explored.

Since the start of the 2025/2026 deciduous fruit (pome and stone) export season, the industry has already incurred direct losses exceeding R350 million, with further exposure continuing to accumulate daily as delayed vessels arrive at destination ports. By Week 2 of the season, export volumes were down 9% year-to-date, while inspection volumes were up 37%, resulting in an abnormal build-up of approximately 1,688 containers in cold storage. This equates to an estimated R1 billion in fruit inventory currently at risk, excluding additional volumes already plugged in at back-of-port facilities.

Exporters have been forced to divert volumes through alternative ports at extraordinary cost, including:

• A 140% increase in shipments via Port Elizabeth, with additional transport costs exceeding R133 million.
• The unprecedented routing of approximately 900 reefer containers through Durban.
• Approximately 1,200 containers via Walvis Bay, excluding penalties for truck standing time, additional cold storage, agent costs, and rising quality claims.

These compounding losses are eroding exporters’ margins, destabilising rural economies, and placing South Africa’s hard-won reputation as a reliable supplier of high-quality fruit under increasing strain.

The industry’s analysis confirms that CTCT’s underperformance stems from five interlinked structural failures, rather than short-term operational shocks:

• Human resources and labour management failures.
• Health and safety governance failures.
• Equipment and systemic infrastructure failures.
• Operational process, execution and control failures.
• Communication and accountability failures.

These areas have been formally documented and communicated to Transnet as part of the escalation process, with some positive results. However, for much of the stone fruit exports, this is too little, too late.

Hortgro is firmly of the view that the challenges at CTCT can no longer be addressed by incremental fixes or reactive crisis management. What is required is a coordinated, transparent, and expert-led transformation programme, supported by measurable commitments, strong executive ownership, strict accountability, and private-sector operational involvement.

Hortgro remains committed to supporting a sustainable recovery at the Port of Cape Town. However, it cannot continue to absorb losses of this magnitude without a decisive and durable shift in performance.

The escalation of this matter underscores the seriousness of the risk now facing South Africa’s export economy, rural employment and international market credibility.

Also read: https://www.hortgro.co.za/news/sa-stone-fruit-growers-fuming-after-logistical-blunders/

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