Guava association expects smaller 2024 harvest

By Glenneis Kriel |4 July 2024 | 5:30 am

The Guava Producers’ Association (GPA) has adjusted its guava production estimate down from 25 200t to 22 500t, making the harvest 16% smaller than the 26 641t harvested last season and the smallest harvest in the past three years.

Guava producers are hoping for cold temperatures and more rainfall this winter in order to yield bigger fruit this year.Photo: FW Archive

The harvest runs from April until November, with production starting in Porterville, followed by Wellington, Paarl and Kraaifontein, and ending in Mossel Bay in the Western Cape.

Willem Grobbelaar, chairperson of the GPA, told Farmer’s Weekly that production was expected to be normal in Wellington, Kraaifontein and Mossel Bay, but it started late in Porterville, with fruit being small in general because of the warm summer temperatures and late onset of winter.

Production in Paarl was also expected to be below average because of wind damage suffered in April.

Grobbelaar said that producers were hoping for more good rain and cold this winter, which would result in better fruit sizes than last season. This, in turn, would enable them to supply the fresh market with more fruit.

“More than 70% of guavas are sold in the juice market and these prices are under pressure because of high production in Brazil.

“The canning market is also under pressure, so farmers will have to recover rising costs by selling more fruit to the fresh market,” he added.

Grobbelaar is excited about more fresh-cut guavas being sold in the South Africa market, because he felt that the fruit looked more enticing in this format.

The GPA is also putting a lot of effort into marketing guavas as delicious, versatile and healthy fruit.

Jacques Jordaan, CEO of the GPA, said that last year’s harvest surprised everyone with a large volume of late-ripening guavas, making it the largest harvest in the past six years. Quality, however, was not up to standard, with most of the late guavas being used for juice.

He said there was little fluctuation between the percentages of fruit being directed to the different markets:

“The percentage of fruit directed to juice fluctuates around 76%, canning around 4%, and fresh fruit around 20%. The canning market has been stagnant over the past few years, with most of the canned fruit being sold in South Africa.”