South Africa has secured a new export market for fresh table grapes to the Republic of Korea (ROK), marking a significant milestone for the country’s agricultural exports and reinforcing the sector’s growing contribution to economic growth.

By Lebogang Mashala, Editor at African Farming

As agriculture continues to reassert itself as a key driver of the South African economy, Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen has announced that market access has officially been granted for the export of fresh table grapes to South Korea.

According to the Department of Agriculture, ROK formally notified South Africa of the market opening on 23 January 2026. This development enables local producers to begin exporting table grapes to the Asian market, with a formal announcement to be made once the first consignment is ready for shipment.

“The negotiations for this market started more than 20 years ago,” the department said in a statement. “Through sustained engagement between technical teams from both countries, a physical field verification visit was conducted in South Africa in February 2025. This process ultimately led to the finalisation of the Republic of Korea’s phytosanitary import requirements.”

One of the World’s Top Five Table Grape Exporters

South Africa is ranked among the world’s top five table grape exporters, with the industry playing a vital role in generating foreign exchange earnings, creating employment opportunities and contributing significantly to the growth of the agricultural sector.

According to the South African Table Grape Industry (SATI), approximately 55% of South Africa’s table grape exports are destined for the European Union and 20% are exported to the United Kingdom. The 2025/26 table grape season is progressing well, with an estimated export volume of 79.4 million 4.5kg cartons, representing a 0.6% increase compared with the 2024/25 season.

Fresh table grapes exported from South Africa to ROK must comply with all applicable phytosanitary and food safety requirements, as stipulated in the final phytosanitary import conditions for exports.

The Department of Agriculture further indicated that exporters, production units and packhouses wishing to participate in this lucrative market must be registered with the department and obtain an allocated production unit code (PUC) and packhouse code (PHC).

“Growers of registered production units must implement good agricultural practices (GAP), including orchard sanitation and integrated pest management (IPM), or other adequate control measures to ensure that identified quarantine pests are eliminated during the production period,” the department said.

“To safeguard this market, it is critical that producers adhere strictly to the phytosanitary import conditions for the export of fresh table grapes. The final phytosanitary import conditions for exports from South Africa to the Republic of Korea are available on the Department of Agriculture’s website.”