The direction of South Africa’s citrus industry hangs in the balance of a European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) assessment due in 10 days, although the report has already been delayed many times since September. The topic at hand is citrus black spot (CBS) and whether it poses a risk to European growers via imports of South African fruit; an issue that led to a symbolic and temporary import ban at the end of the 2013 season.
CGA CEO Justin Chadwick
“The costs of compliance are immense but then the costs of failure are even more immense,” Citrus Growers Association (CGA) of Southern Africa CEO Justin Chadwick told www.freshfruitportal.comduring Fruit Logistica in Berlin last week.
“We know there will probably be increased enforcement, so we in South Africa are working on basically doing everything possible to comply.
“When we register orchards the department [of agriculture] goes through all of them and ensures they’ve got appropriate treatment, and then there are increased inspections of orchards, packhouses, and of the fruit at the port.”
Chadwick hopes to dispel the belief amongst some European growers, mainly in Spain, that concerns about CBS have been ignored. READ MORE
Source: www.freshfruitportal.com. #IFAMAFRICA
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