South African deciduous fruit industry launches Centre of Excellence to combat invasive pests
SOUTH AFRICA – The South African deciduous fruit industry has established a Centre of Excellence to enhance pest monitoring and secure the sector’s future.
This initiative, led by Hortgro—a horticultural knowledge group and communication platform for various horticultural sectors in South Africa—aims to support deciduous fruit growers in thriving within a globally competitive environment.
The Centre of Excellence is designed to address the increasing threats posed by invasive pests and diseases, thereby safeguarding the industry’s sustainability and competitiveness.
Anton Rabe, Hortgro’s executive director, highlighted the urgent need for comprehensive pest surveillance as new pests increasingly threaten the industry’s sustainability and profitability, from crop damage to quarantine risks.
“We must understand where pests occur and where they don’t, as this directly influences crop protection strategies and practices,” he said.
“Catching an invasive pest as soon as it arrives in the country may allow us to eradicate it before it has gained a foothold. Additionally, warning of the arrival of a pest or disease buys our industry critical time to develop management practices and manage phytosanitary concerns.”
To achieve this goal, the Centre of Excellence will build upon the monitoring capacity of FruitFly Africa (FFA), an operating company with industry-wide support that has managed pest monitoring services since 2001.
The FFA has been instrumental in tracking and controlling pests like the Mediterranean fruit fly across all major deciduous fruit production areas.
Their initiatives include monitoring more than 6,000 traps and producing and releasing millions of sterile Mediterranean fruit flies annually to manage populations.
The Centre will enhance these efforts by expanding surveillance to other significant pests, including the Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer (PSHB) and spotted wing Drosophila (SWD).
This strategic expansion positions the deciduous fruit industry as a proactive leader in pest and disease surveillance.
The capacity established at FFA can also be utilized by other industries, such as berries, wine, and table grapes.
The Centre of Excellence initiative will ensure that the deciduous fruit industry remains resilient and internationally competitive despite the threat of invasive pests.
In related agricultural news, South Africa’s agriculture sector experienced a significant decline in Q3 of 2024, with agriculture gross value added falling by -28.8% quarter-on-quarter, which further dragged South Africa’s overall GDP growth lower by -0.7ppt to -0.3% quarter-on-quarter.
According to the National Crop Estimates Committee, on the export front, South Africa’s Q3 agriculture exports rebounded modestly by 5% relative to the same period in 2023 to US$4.12bn, with the cumulative total for 2024 reaching $10.55bn, up 4% year-on-year.
Irrigation, due to relatively good dam levels and improved electricity supply, helped cushion the horticulture sector from the ravaging El Nino-induced drought conditions.
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