According to the media, New Era Live of Namibia, for the first time in the history of that country, 100 tons of blueberries grown along the Okavango River were exported by the Namibian company Mashare Berries Farming, and shipped via Transworld Cargo, another Namibian company, to export destinations in Europe.

Mashare Berries Farming surpassed the symbolic mark of 100 tons during its first year of production, last October, and since September, with a first shipment of 7 tons to Frankfurt by air, shipments to the markets of the Netherlands have been followed, Germany, Spain, Russia and even Hong Kong.

Pandemic and postharvest

Adapting to the new pandemic protocols, the local industry follows strict health regulations, which begin with complete disinfection before starting work and are maintained throughout the handling process in harvest and packaging, using face masks in the fields and in packing facilities during these Covid-19 times.

The most complex and challenging process is that the fruits must constantly be kept at a temperature just above the freezing point (1ºC), so the blueberries have to reach the refrigerator in half an hour, where they are cooled to a few degrees Celsius. The fruit is extremely sensitive to pressure and temperature, which means that it must be packed and classified in cool rooms and at very low temperatures. As a result, the local workforce has to wear thick protective clothing, although the outside temperature can easily exceed 30 ° C.

Namibian blueberries are loaded by air and arrive at destination markets in approximately 10 hours, controlling the temperature all the way from the initial cold room to the wholesale buyer in the Northern Hemisphere.

South Africa protagonist

South Africa in the 2019/2020 campaign achieved a volume of shipments of 12.282 tons, which translates into more than a 50% increase compared to what was achieved in the 2018/2019 season, where it reached 8.071 tons exported, and according to the South African Association of Berries Growers (Sabpa), a volume of 24.000 tons is projected for this season and the harvest - of which 90% is sent to the markets of Europe and Great Britain - is expected to raise more than 2 million rand (USD 130 million, or € 109 million), a significant figure for any economy.

These figures show an exponential growth that can make the South African industry a major player in the international industry.

Expanding industry

Elzette Schutte, manager of BerriesZA, assures that the projections of the South African industry for 2022/2023 are to reach a production of 50.000 tons, which would mean placing the South African industry in the first five exporting countries of blueberries in the world, so the South African producers are looking to reach Asian markets to further expand their industry.

South Africa has very favorable climatic conditions, with new farms and access to state-of-the-art technology. In recent times it has acquired much more productive varieties, which allow it to project itself as an industry with great future growth. “We just hope that international demand will increase as awareness of this superfood increases,” says Elzette.

"Nobody stays still ..."

The projections and reality of this industry in its commercial, technological and management aspects, plus the analysis of the most important challenges and opportunities of the global blueberry industry as a whole, will be addressed at the next XXI International Blueberries Seminar that It will be held for the first time in person in Casablanca, Morocco, in September 2021.

“Nobody stays still. New industries in places like Morocco, Mexico, Peru and Southern Africa are still in the establishment phase and have the opportunity to make appropriate investments in systems, varieties, infrastructure and technology not of yesterday, but of tomorrow, ”predicted Cort Brazelton more than a year ago, and today it is already a reality.

Southern Africa, also called Southern Africa or Southern Africa, is one of the twenty-two subregions into which the UN divides the world and is made up of five countries: Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Swaziland and South Africa, which belong to the Development Community of Southern Africa (SADC).