Buyer questions
The things importers ask first.
Straight answers, including where the answer is “not yet”.
When can you ship?
The South African export window runs from roughly week 11 for soft citrus and week 16 for oranges. The window that matters for India is narrower — broadly July to October, after Egyptian and Chinese supply winds down. See the season calendar.
What does cold treatment do to shelf life?
Treatment is held during the voyage, so arrival condition depends on how well the fruit was pre-cooled and how tight the chain was before loading. Late mandarins with a robust rind — Nadorcott, Tango — tolerate it better than thin-skinned early clementines. We will say so rather than quote you a variety that will not travel.
Which port do you discharge at?
Nhava Sheva as standard, which is also the price reference for the market. Chennai, Cochin and Mundra are workable for smaller single-container volumes.
Can you match Egyptian pricing?
No, and we will not pretend otherwise. Egyptian fruit reaches India from a cost base South African growers cannot match. We compete on arrival condition, on consistency across a season, and on the fact that a programme agreed with us is shipped as agreed.
What happens if a consignment is queried on arrival?
Every carton carries its orchard and packhouse codes, and the same codes are on the phytosanitary certificate. A query is answered from the documentation, not reconstructed afterwards.
What volumes do you have available?
Volume is contracted per programme ahead of the season rather than held as open stock. Tell us the variety, the window and the port, and we will come back with what we can commit to and when.
What are your payment terms?
Terms are set per programme, against volume, variety and whether this is a first shipment or a continuing relationship. They are put in writing with the offer, before anything is packed.
Who are we actually contracting with?
Merchant Engineering (Pty) Ltd, registration 2021/639889/07, trading as Southern Season Fruit Trading. A South African private company. See compliance.
Sources
- FreshPlaza — South Africa’s just-wrapped season in India offers lessons for citrus exporters
- FreshPlaza — South African citrus steps in as Egypt and China wind down in India
- USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Citrus Annual: South Africa
Industry figures are the most recent published at the time of writing and are indicative, not a warranty.