Beanstalk Global & The PMA in South Africa – Grapes!

The Produce Marketing Association is a key International trade organisation representing companies from every segment of the global fresh produce and floral supply chain. The PMA helps members grow by providing connections that expand business opportunities and increase sales and consumption. Their mission is to connect, inform and deliver industry solutions to enhance their members’ prosperity.

Each month, we will be focusing on a major area of South African fresh produce and discussing that all with the country’s key industry experts so we can learn and appreciate fantastic South African Fresh Produce.

We are very proud to have our Partner Sponsor KisanHub involved with this month’s Broadcast. They support fresh produce businesses in over 7 different countries managing regional, national or international supply chains. To see how they can assist your business in South Africa CLICK THIS LINK 

In our third Broadcast we will be speaking to a number of leading experts on the amazing South African Grape sectors. 

From the valleys of the Berg and Hex Rivers to the Bushveld in the tropical north, from the foot of Table Mountain in the Western Cape to the dry desert land of the Orange River, a wide diversity of climate and soil, where man and nature combine to produce grapes of excellent quality. Imagine a place where people of all cultures and religious persuasion work together to fulfil a common goal – growing the finest grapes in the world. The story of South African grapes is the story of people and their endeavours, of opportunities, of betterment and creating a future for all those involved with the industry.

On our expert panel we have:

Clayton Swart of SATI.  Clayton is the Manager for Communications and Market Development at the South African Table Grape Industry and has held the role for the past 5 seasons. He is a contributor to the SA Fruit Journal, and represents the industry at global fruit exhibitions in key markets. He holds degrees in journalism and has broad experience as a senior journalist for some of SA’s leading newspapers and a leading online news portal. He co-authored a book about Nelson Mandela. He lived and worked in Cape Town and Johannesburg/Pretoria while working as Communications Manager in the business and medical industries before moving to SATI.

Charl du Bois is the Commercial Executive for Capespan Commercial Business and leads the Citrus, Pome fruit, Table grape as well as the Sales teams that are responsible for procurement and sales for Capespan globally.  Charl is a Law graduate from the University of Stellenbosch, and is well known in industry circles. Charl has an impressive career, gaining considerable experience in the Grapes industry with Standard Charter and Afrifresh where he was responsible for both the table grape and citrus portfolios. Whilst his knowledge of farming is extensive, Charl is very well acquainted with the markets.

Kandas Cloete is an Analyst in the farm and production analytics division of the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) and working primarily on perennial horticultural crops. Her focus includes farm-level modelling, impact quantification at farm and industry level and trend analysis.  She is also busy with her PhD in agricultural economics, focusing on land use patterns in South Africa’s commercial agriculture. The project is a joint effort between Stellenbosch University and Agroscope, the Swiss Confederation’s centre of excellence for agricultural research.

For Heidi de Villiers growing up on a wine farm, it was love at first site for vineyards. After school, I finished my BSc Degree in Viticulture and Oenology degree at Stellenbosch University. I started my career in in the industry and soon realised that my passion lies with the viticultural side. I worked at a vine nursery for 3 years and got to know the various new breeding programmes’ table grape varieties. Started working at IFG in 2016 and currently their commercial manager for table grapes for Africa and Middle East , as well as their international commercial manager for cherries.

The key takeaways from this table grape focused broadcast are:

1. SA table grape industry is in good health
2. Record volume intake expected for the 2020/21 season
3. Consumer preferences are important in breeding programmes
4. New innovative cultivars are key to consistent high yields
5. Industry contributes to job creation in areas where most needed

Click image below to watch the recording or click on the Podcast icon to listen to the Podcast:

To find out more about the PMA in Southern Africa, PLEASE CLICK THIS LINK.

To see how KisanHub can assist your business in South Africa or Internationally, just contact CEO Giles Barker and his team by CLICKING THIS LINK.

If you would like to become a Partner Sponsor to promote your products or services with this unique International Broadcast series, please either email: info@beanstalk.global  or call +44 (0) 1284 715055.