China eyes increase in South African agricultural imports, says Agbiz

The Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz) has expressed optimism over China's intentions to bolster its imports of South African agricultural products.

This development comes on the heels of a recent statement from Wu Peng, the current Chinese Ambassador to South Africa, who emphasised the need for enhanced bilateral trade and economic cooperation through social media platform X.

Peng further said that the Chinese government welcomes more South African agricultural and industrial products to enter the huge Chinese market.

Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist at Agbiz, underscored the significance of such statements from Chinese officials, particularly regarding trade matters.

“China has profound importance in global agriculture. In 2023, China was a leading importer, accounting for 11% of global agricultural imports, with imports valued at $218 billion," he said.

Sihlobo noted that Brazil, the United States, Thailand, and several other nations dominated the market as leading suppliers to China.

Nevertheless, he emphasised that China was actively seeking to diversify its agricultural imports, a push that has gained momentum following the implementation of initial tariffs by the US in 2018 and will continue into 2025.

“South and Latin American countries, as well as Australia, have been the primary beneficiaries of China's diversification strategy so far. South Africa must also be part of this conversation. And what Ambassador Wu Peng raises — China’s interest in South African agricultural products — is a starting point for a deeper trade conversation.”

Sihlobo said that the first step will have to be for South African authorities to approach China to present a range of products that can be exported, and then to build from there.

Currently, South Africa's footprint in the Chinese agricultural market is modest, accounting for only 0.4% (approximately $979 million) of China's imports. These exports include various fruits, wine, red meat, nuts, maize, soybeans, and wool.

Sihlobo argued that there was ample opportunity for South African agricultural exports to expand significantly.

“The South African agricultural sector organised agriculture and researchers consistently point out the need to lower import tariffs in China and remove phytosanitary constraints on various products. There is now a pathway to have a productive conversation about this matter and move with speed.”

Farming association TLU SA general manager, Bennie van Zyl, shared a positive outlook on the prospects of trading with international markets like China.

“I think it is very important to look at the sustainability of that. We also believe that all the necessary steps need to be taken but it's good news. We also feel that doing trade with China shouldn’t break down existing markets as it was built over a number of years,” he said.

Van Zyl added that existing markets already have the existing infrastructure for exports from South Africa.

“They also have the logistics to transport all the commodities. When you establish a new market, it's a lot of cost and time to establish infrastructure and logistics. However, we won’t be negative about any international market that will benefit the agriculture sector.”

Francois Rossouw, CEO of Southern African Agri Initiative (Saai), welcomed Ambassador Wu Peng’s statements with enthusiasm.

“Access to larger international markets like China is critical for the long-term survival and growth of family farms in South Africa. Expanding exports means better prices, more stability, and stronger rural economies,” he said.

Rossouw added that to truly benefit from this opportunity, we need urgent action from our government to break down trade barriers, speed up negotiations on market access, and simplify compliance requirements.

“Family farmers are ready to deliver high-quality produce to the Chinese market – we just need the right support and political will to make it happen.”

BUSINESS REPORT