March 2025
Downloads (1 Nov 2024 – 1 Mar 2025)
- Container Checklist – 1398 downloads
- PAG Water Project Benchmark Result – Phase 5 – 1335 downloads
- ‘Quo Vadis’ – Long-Term CA storage regimes of Cripps’ Pink – 1321 downloads
- Trends in Container Technology and Supply – 1302 downloads
- Fresh Notes 194 – PAG Feedback (March 3) – 1245 downloads
- PAG Water Project phase 4 – 1070 downloads
- CA Manual revised – 1019 downloads
Update on Logistics Chain Efficiencies
Contact: Jacques du Preez
- All fruit kind inspected volumes passed for export declined by 5% year to date (weeks 40-8), with volumes decreasing weekly.
- Wind delays (except February) were lower this season.
- Operational challenges in Cape Town, but equipment performance has improved despite setbacks.
- New rubber tyre gantries and refurbishing of existing STS cranes are part of a recovery plan to clear backlogs.
- An incentive scheme for productivity has been implemented and should yield positive results.
Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
Contact: Nitasha Baijnath-Pillay
ESG Work Group Focus Areas
- ESG compliance & risks
- Environmental sustainability (including resource efficiency)
- Plastics and packaging waste
- Water resources and quality
- Climate change response and mitigation (including footprinting)
Recent Decisions
- The name ESG will be kept and included as a discipline on the PAG agenda.
- The ESG WG will include social and governance aspects and environmental issues (packaging waste and compliance). Specific experts and packhouses will be invited to address these issues, including emissions from the farm level.
- The WG is an advisory group, but members who can drive implementation (e.g., GreenCape, Blue North wrt benchmarking, SIZA, and Packhouses) can be invited to submit projects for funding consideration.
- PAG was developed with a very specific focus on pome fruit.
Loading of Reefer Containers
Contact: Johan Strydom
- The document has been updated and can be found in the Pome protocols:
Loading of Reefer Containers – Oct 2024 (PDF)
Packhouse Water and Energy Management Projects
Contact: Dianca Yssel / Eddie Vienings
- Blue North water project phase 7 report is available:
Microsoft Word – PAG Water Project Benchmarks Phase 7
Water Use Profiles of Packhouses
There is significant variation in the water use profiles of participating packhouses, attributed to:
- Lack of metering (thus estimations)
- Water allocation (totals metered, but not individual areas)
- Lack of, or errors in, water consumption records
- Use of different types of flume technology
- Application of different water recycling technologies
Market Access Feedback
Contact: Jacques du Preez / Lindi Benic
- Mexico: DALRRD confirmed the same inspector as last season will be present from 14 Apr – 20 Jun.
- Taiwan: Report and invitation for Taiwanese authorities to visit have been finalised. South Africa remains suspended from apple exports.
- Thailand: Market access for apples has been granted; first containers are already en route.
- Philippines: Authorities are expected to visit as soon as they obtain confirmation. Potential market access is expected in 2026.
PAG Disciplines and Coordinators
Please contact the relevant person below if you have any queries regarding the PAG.
- Chairman: Koos Bouwer (bouweb@orangenet.co.za)
- Engineering: Henk Ryke (henk@tad.co.za), Koos Bouwer (bouweb@orangenet.co.za)
- Packaging: Bryce MacIntyre (bryce.macintyre@gmail.com)
- Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG): Nitasha Baijnath-Pillay (nitasha@hortgro.co.za)
- Environmental Footprint: Eddie Vienings (eddie@bluenorth.co.za), Dianca Yssel (dianca@bluenorth.co.za)
- Packhouse Large: Francois Malan (francois.malan@cfg.co.za), Wardo Conradie (wardoc@dutoit.com), Chris Petzer (crisp@tad.co.za), Fanie Grundlingh (fanieg@lanko.co.za)
- Packhouse Small: Hendrik Claassen (hendrik@bellafrutta.co.za), Thinus Loock (thinus@jjloock.co.za)
- Post-Harvest Quality: Mariana Jooste (mariana@hortgro.co.za), Dr Elke Crouch (elke@sun.ac.za), Henk Griessel (henkg@tru-cape.co.za), Jaco Moelich (jaco.moelich@fruitways.co.za), Elri van der Merwe (elrivdm@tru-cape.co.za)
- Logistics: Johan Strydom (pslog@mweb.co.za), Andy Connell (andy@abarc.co.za)
- Communication Strategy: Richard Hurndall (hurndallr@gmail.com), Koos Bouwer (bouweb@orangenet.co.za), Elise-Marie Steenkamp (elise-marie@hortgro.co.za)
- PPECB: Bernardus Henning (bernardush@ppecb.com)
- FPEF: Werner van Rooyen (werner@fpef.co.za)
- DALRRD:
- Director: Food Safety and Quality Assurance, Billy Makhafola (BillyM@dalrrd.gov.za)
- Regional Manager: NPPPIS WC Directorate: Inspection Services, Gcobani Tsako (GcobaniT@dalrrd.gov.za)
- Hortgro: Jacques du Preez (jacques@hortgro.co.za), Lindi Benic (lindi@hortgro.co.za)
- Research: Prof Wiehann Steyn (wiehann@hortgro.co.za)
- SIZA: Matthew Guest (matthewg@siza.co.za)