Raisins South-Africa
Raisins South-Africa
The Orange River area - Northern Cape received rainfall ranging from 80mm – 200mm during the last two months. The level of the dams are more than 100% full and the Orange River is currently in flood. The producers are obviously concerned about the water level particularly where the vineyards are on the banks of the river.
The South African Raisin Industry had to be more creative to address the challenges posed by the wet weather. There has been a more robust selection of fruit to be harvested to ensure good quality and additional attention has been given to canopy management. Despite all efforts the crop will be 15-20% smaller vs 2020 volumes. The unusual weather experienced along the Orange River has had an impact on the production of Golden sultanas. The sultana grape variety was dried as SA sultanas as due to rain damage. The Golden sultana crop is estimated to be between 10 000 to 15 000 t versus 25 000 t in 2020.The total crop estimate for the Orange River is 55,000-60,000 metric tons versus 75,000 metric tons in 2020.