The Eastern Cape government has welcomed a R100-million injection by two private companies for large-scale avocado production at the troubled Majola Tea Estate in Port St Johns.
However, the estate might have to wait until 2029 before the project reaches full maturity.
The announcement on the new investment was made after a meeting on Monday involving rural development and agrarian reform MEC Mlibo Qoboshiyane, Agriculture Minister Senzeni Zokwana, representatives from Majola and the Lusikisiki-based Magwa Tea Estate as well as the South African Chamber of Mines.
The meeting was held in East London.
It was announced that Masimong Agri, a company involved in avocado production in Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal, and its business partner Univeg, would invest R100-million for avocado production starting with Majola.
The Daily Dispatch previously reported that the estate, with Magwa, was on the brink of collapse with hundreds of employees having gone for months without payment.
This is despite the provincial government having invested more than R200-million in Majola alone over the past five years.
On Monday, an upbeat Qoboshiyane said the provincial government welcomed the investment and would provide the necessary support to Masimong Agri to make the initiative a success.
“Any investor coming into the province requires infrastructure and support guarantees such as water, access roads, energy from government.
“To support this investment, we will ensure infrastructure is ready so that produce is transported from the fields to the markets without problems,” he said.
Masimong Agri chairman Mike Teke, who is also Chamber of Mines president, said his company had already engaged local communities, conducted soil analysis and were now getting ready to sign lease agreements with local stakeholders in preparation for production.
“Our plan is to plant avocado on 200 hectares of land in Majola with an expected investment of R80-million to R100-million.
“We expect the project to take about 12 to 15 years to get to full maturity, which will increase the value of investment significantly.”
He said the company was not necessarily looking at buying land but would work with local communities to lease the land.
In line with the plan discussed during the meeting, planting is scheduled to start in 2019 and is expected to take about four years with around 50 hectares planted each year.
It is expected to reach full maturity in 2029 with a yield of about 3000 tons or 750000 cartons of the fruit.
Univeg’s chief executive officer Trevor Dukes said they wanted to partner with local communities to produce avocado in the province.
“The Eastern Cape is an interesting area for us because it extends harvest season right to December. Our role is to take the fruit to the market and to create jobs in the process,” he added.
Qoboshiyane said the investment would also contribute towards the province’s economic development and help revitalise agriculture.
Zokwana said avocado production would help supplement productivity and income for the tea estate.
He said while tea was the main crop produced in Majola, it was not good that people who ran it put all their eggs into one basket. Crop diversification was crucial, he added.
Majola factory manager Vuyani Baleni said they also supported the investment as long it was meant to help people sustain their livelihoods. — sikhon@dispatch.co.za
R100m boost for avocado project
However, the estate might have to wait until 2029 before the project reaches full maturity.
The announcement on the new investment was made after a meeting on Monday involving rural development and agrarian reform MEC Mlibo Qoboshiyane, Agriculture Minister Senzeni Zokwana, representatives from Majola and the Lusikisiki-based Magwa Tea Estate as well as the South African Chamber of Mines.
The meeting was held in East London.
It was announced that Masimong Agri, a company involved in avocado production in Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal, and its business partner Univeg, would invest R100-million for avocado production starting with Majola.
The Daily Dispatch previously reported that the estate, with Magwa, was on the brink of collapse with hundreds of employees having gone for months without payment.
This is despite the provincial government having invested more than R200-million in Majola alone over the past five years.
On Monday, an upbeat Qoboshiyane said the provincial government welcomed the investment and would provide the necessary support to Masimong Agri to make the initiative a success.
“Any investor coming into the province requires infrastructure and support guarantees such as water, access roads, energy from government.
“To support this investment, we will ensure infrastructure is ready so that produce is transported from the fields to the markets without problems,” he said.
Masimong Agri chairman Mike Teke, who is also Chamber of Mines president, said his company had already engaged local communities, conducted soil analysis and were now getting ready to sign lease agreements with local stakeholders in preparation for production.
“Our plan is to plant avocado on 200 hectares of land in Majola with an expected investment of R80-million to R100-million.
“We expect the project to take about 12 to 15 years to get to full maturity, which will increase the value of investment significantly.”
He said the company was not necessarily looking at buying land but would work with local communities to lease the land.
In line with the plan discussed during the meeting, planting is scheduled to start in 2019 and is expected to take about four years with around 50 hectares planted each year.
It is expected to reach full maturity in 2029 with a yield of about 3000 tons or 750000 cartons of the fruit.
Univeg’s chief executive officer Trevor Dukes said they wanted to partner with local communities to produce avocado in the province.
“The Eastern Cape is an interesting area for us because it extends harvest season right to December. Our role is to take the fruit to the market and to create jobs in the process,” he added.
Qoboshiyane said the investment would also contribute towards the province’s economic development and help revitalise agriculture.
Zokwana said avocado production would help supplement productivity and income for the tea estate.
He said while tea was the main crop produced in Majola, it was not good that people who ran it put all their eggs into one basket. Crop diversification was crucial, he added.
Majola factory manager Vuyani Baleni said they also supported the investment as long it was meant to help people sustain their livelihoods. — sikhon@dispatch.co.za
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