Berries industry plea as Transnet threatens 30 000 jobs
BerriesZA said the Transnet strike has occurred during the peak of the berry export season
The berries industry has called for urgent intervention to halt the ongoing strike at Transnet as thousands of jobs hang in the balance.
The plea has been made by South African Berry Producers Association, BerriesZA, which has written to key national ministers to resolve the impasse and end the strike that began on Thursday, resulting in the ports authority declaring a force majeure.
BerriesZA said the strike has occurred during the peak of the berry export season, ‘which means even a single day of ports not operating will have a significant knock-on effect on the entire berry value chain’.
Chairperson of BerriesZA, Justine Mudge said the latest strike action could be the final nail in the coffin for berry farmers.
“This is putting 30 000 livelihoods who depend on the industry at risk, as well as millions of rands in export revenue.
“It also follows the industry having been severely impacted by ongoing operational issues at the country’s ports as a result of ageing and out of service infrastructure, inefficient systems and staff shortages,” said Mudge.
“Delayed shipments as a result of the poor port performance, has affected the quality of berries that reach international markets, resulting in product rejection rates from receiving clients skyrocketing to an unprecedented quarter of a billion rand last year.”
He said government must mitigate the impact of the current strike to safeguard the industry, which is expected to contribute at least R3-billion in export revenue to the local economy this season.
“The situation is untenable, and unless urgent action is taken, the government will have to explain to hundreds of people why they do not have a job as a result of their inaction.”
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