Wayne, Pa. – The Western Cape Citrus Producers Forum (WCCPF) has announced the appointment of Suhanra Conradie as its new chief executive officer. Ms. Conradie replaces Joretha Geldenhuys, who served as the Forum’s CEO since August 2009.
“Suhanra brings a wealth of knowledge in dealing with foreign markets, as well as expertise in all aspects of growth, distribution, and supply in the fruit export industry,” said Gerrit van der Merwe, chairman of the WCCPF. “With her in place, we expect to continue the development, expansion, and success of our position in U.S. market.”
Ms. Conradie, who received a Bachelor’s of Commerce degree in accounting and economics from the Univeristy of Stellenbosch, most recently directed marketing, finance and sales efforts for Oceanic Fruit Exports in South Africa. Her role focused on bringing fruits from the farm, to packing house, to the final market destination, with daily interaction in various foreign markets in Europe, the U.K., and the Middle East. Prior to joining Oceanic, she held marketing and finance roles with Sunny Fruit Export Company and Kromco. In her role as CEO for the WCCPF, she will be based in Wellington, South Africa.
“I am very excited to accept this role, which will enable me to fulfill a long-held professional desire to market South African citrus fruits in the United States, the most important market in the world,” Conradie said. “Consumption of South African summer citrus continues to grow as a welcomed category by U.S. consumers – something attributable to the high quality and delicious flavor consistent with fruit produced by our growers.”
South African citrus exports to the U.S. began in 1999. All citrus bound for the U.S. from South Africa undergoes USDA inspections to ensure compliance with all U.S. regulations. South Africa is the second largest exporter of citrus in the world and produces 60 percent of all citrus grown in the Southern Hemisphere. Fruit bound for U.S. consumers comes mostly from the region near Citrusdal and Clanwilliam, the Northern Cape near Kimberly and the northwest along the Orange River, near Upington.
The WCCPF is a consortium of 350 South African growers eligible to export summer citrus to the United States. Its purpose is to facilitate logistical, marketing and sales support coordination of their products. The consortium’s mission is to maintain and expand its role as the preferred supplier in the U.S., and to grow and ship the best summer citrus in the world to U.S. consumers. The WCCPF’s summer citrus growers only ship products to the U.S. that meet and exceed U.S.D.A. and U.S.F.D.A. protocols by rigorously adhering to self-imposed Seal-of-Approval Guidelines, guaranteeing their citrus fruits provide superior quality that is easy to peel, seedless, nutritious and safe. For more information, visit www.summercitrus.com or find South African Summer Citrus at www.facebook.com/summercitrus.
Source: Western Cape Citrus Producers Forum
