South African citrus exports to the European Union suspended

From the Citizen:

South Africa on Monday voluntarily suspended its export of citrus fruit to the European Union following the latest reports of traces of the citrus black spot (CBS) on the country’s fruit, said the Citrus Growers Association (CGA).

Export of all citrus to the EU, except mandarins, would cease but fruit which was already packed and inspected for export on Monday could still be shipped, said CGA’s envoy to the EU, Deon Joubert.

“The Western and Northern Cape are not included in this voluntary suspension,” he said.

The EU had informed the department of agriculture, forestry and fisheries (DAFF) that four citrus consignments from South Africa had contained the fungal disease which appears as black spots on the skin of citrus fruit.

The CGA intended to ask the DAFF to get evidence from EU authorities which would verify the presence of the fungus at the point of inspection.

For more information, read the full article on the Citizen's website.