Port of Cape Town congestion forces fruit export diversions, costs industry billions

SOUTH AFRICA – The Port of Cape Town has been ranked the world’s worst-performing container terminal for the 2025/26 export season, forcing agricultural producers to divert thousands of tonnes of produce to Eastern Cape ports and incurring billions of dollars in losses.

New data from the South African Table Grape Industry shows the port’s share of total table grape exports fell from 90% in the previous season to 76% in 2025/26, while the proportion moving through Eastern Cape ports rose from 6% to 21%.

Additionally, an estimated 55,000 tonnes of Western Cape table grapes were diverted via Eastern Cape ports. SATI says the shift enabled exports to continue but came at “great additional cost to the industry“.

Furthermore, a joint statement by SATI, Hortgro, and the Fresh Produce Exporters’ Forum puts logistics-related losses for the table grape industry at around R3.2 billion (US$175 million) for the season, with the stone fruit sector recording estimated losses of R1.05 billion (US$57 million) through lost revenue and additional costs.

The Port of Cape Town handles approximately 80% of deciduous fruit exports from a sector that supports around 320,000 jobs. The ongoing logistics crisis threatens profitability and puts hundreds of thousands of agricultural jobs at risk.

The figures follow Transnet Port Terminals’ announcement of an R96 million (US$5.3 million) investment in four new hybrid straddle carriers for the Cape Town Container Terminal and come after the World Bank and S&P Global’s Container Port Performance Index 2025 ranked the Port of Cape Town last among 400 container ports globally.

Industry bodies welcome the equipment investment but say operational performance at the terminal remains “at a low and unacceptable level“.

Ivan Meyer, Western Cape Minister of Agriculture, Economic Development and Tourism, said, “A non-performing Port of Cape Town places a direct and unsustainable financial burden on our producers. Every delay and diversion erodes farm profitability, threatens export competitiveness, and places jobs at risk across the agricultural value chain,”

Meyer also supports greater private-sector participation in the port’s operations and management. “Every available resource and intervention must be directed at restoring optimal performance at the Port of Cape Town. The competitiveness of our agricultural exports and the sustainability of our farming communities depend on it,” he says.

Lastly, without substantial improvements, South Africa’s fruit sector faces continued threats to its global market position and the livelihoods of thousands of agricultural workers.

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