New cultivars could revive litchi industry

Late cultivars aimed at the Chinese market could be the answer to South Africa’s dwindling litchi industry.

Growers attending the South African Litchi Growers’ Association’s (SALGA) research feedback meeting in Mbombela recently, bemoaned the lack of quality litchi cultivars available. This resulted in a limited harvesting period, predominantly over December, and low profitability in local and European markets, with the latter being flooded with fruit from Madagascar during the same period.

SALGA grower director, Bram Snijder, said a recent visit to the China Litchi Conference had proved promising.

“There is a strong [demand] from China for our litchis. But we need to aim for cultivars that [can be] harvested in February to get them to China in time for their New Year [celebrations]. The [Chinese] want quality rather than quantity, and look for [large] fruit with good colouring and a small pip. “With the right cultivars, the Chinese market will be lucrative. This will go a long way to attracting farmers back into the sector who have left litchi farming.”

He said China was interested in collaborating with South Africa on cultivar development. Since the seasons in China were opposite to that of South Africa, it could speed up the development process, and the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) would be submitting a proposal for such a partnership by March.

Snijder added that there was a big drive in China towards “green” farming practices as there had been food safety issues in the past. “Asian countries are also moving towards sulphurfree fruit and are developing niche markets abroad.”

Arthur Sippel, manager of plant breeding at the ARC’s Institute for Tropical and Subtropical Fruits, said cultivar development had been slow, and was exacerbated by imported cultivars not being compatible with local rootstocks. “The drive is to develop late and early cultivars that deliver good fruit. Currently the Early Delight cultivar, which is harvested in October, has shown promising results, but growers complained last season about fruit bursting, resulting in lower-quality litchis.”

According to Sippel, climate change was also having an impact on orchards, as “current cultivars tend to produce an early flush in warmer winters, with low flower development and consequently, lower yields”. – Lindi Botha

Fotolia ABOVE: Litchi cultivars that are ready for harvesting later in the season could potentially pull the South African industry out of its slump, according to Bram Snijder, grower director at the SA Litchi Growers’ Association.