South African citrus group celebrates 25 years

Summer Citrus from South Africa is celebrating its 25th consecutive year shipping citrus from South Africa to the U.S. The SCSA group has more than doubled exports in the past several years, shipping a sustained 100,000 pallets to the U.S. and anticipates sustaining the current growth trajectory for the next 3-5 years, according to a news release.

In 1999, Summer Citrus from South Africa entered the U.S. market for the first time with just a few pallets of citrus during a time when the imported citrus category was not yet established. Over the past two decades, the category was slowly built, with the product being distributed to a select group of importers. Since then, this small but mighty group steadily established South Africa as the preferred supplier of citrus to the U.S. consumer during the summer months, said the release. 

“From the very beginning to now, long-term relationships have formed the backbone of this business and has contributed to the sustained growth and longevity of the program,” Suhanra Conradie, Summer Citrus from South Africa CEO said in the release. “The Holt family and their staff have formed an enormous part of this sustained growth and have been a partner for us to count on. It has not been easy, but the challenges have made us stronger and allowed us not only to build demand in the U.S., but also allowed us to utilize our opportunities collectively and expand footprint in the U.S. market even further.”

 Related news: USDA downgrades 2022-23 citrus estimates 

In the early years, it was the dedicated conventional vessels that were being shipped to the port of Philadelphia. Through sustained growth, SCSA was given the opportunity to engage with the shipping giants of the world where SCSA now splits their volumes 50/50 between conventional vessels and containers and SCSA ships to both sides of the Delaware River, said the release.

“A quarter century is a remarkable milestone in any commodities-based business, and we are extremely proud to partner with our longtime friends in South Africa,” Leo Holt, President and CEO of Holt Logistics, Operator of Gloucester Terminals said in the release. “Building a diverse supply chain ensures food security and access to nutritious fresh food products here in our local markets and beyond. We are thankful to all of our partners who prioritize the safe and efficient movement of cargo through our ports.”