South African agricultural exporters are gaining greater access to the Chinese market following an agreement that opens China to South African cherry exports, creating new opportunities for producers and businesses across the agricultural value chain.
Agriculture Minister Willie Aucamp signed a market-access protocol with Sun Meijun of China’s General Administration of Customs on 8 September in Beijing, formally clearing the way for South African cherries to enter China.
The agreement was signed during the ninth Sanitary and Phytosanitary Ministerial Meeting and represents another step in strengthening agricultural trade between South Africa and China.
China opens its cherry market to South Africa
China is the world’s largest cherry-importing market, creating significant potential for South African producers.
In 2025, China imported approximately 586,900 tonnes of cherries worth $3.3 billion. Access to even a small share of this market could provide South African growers with new export revenue and opportunities to establish relationships with Chinese buyers.
The new protocol is particularly significant because it combines market access with China’s zero-tariff arrangements for qualifying South African products.
Lower or zero tariffs can reduce the cost of entering the Chinese market, potentially improving the competitiveness of South African agricultural exports.
Beyond cherries
The agreement could also pave the way for greater diversification of South Africa’s agricultural exports to China.
Negotiations to secure market access for South African blueberries are already at an advanced stage. China has submitted a draft import protocol to South Africa, with the government aiming to finalise the agreement before the end of 2026.
Expanding access for products such as cherries and blueberries could help South Africa reduce its reliance on traditional export destinations while opening opportunities in one of the world’s largest consumer markets.
Boost for the agricultural value chain
Greater exports to China could generate benefits well beyond farms.
Higher demand for South African fresh produce could stimulate investment in:
- Fruit production and orchards
- Packaging and processing
- Cold-chain infrastructure
- Warehousing
- Transport and logistics
- Export services
- Agricultural technology
This could strengthen employment and investment across rural economies while increasing foreign-exchange earnings from agricultural exports.
For farmers, access to large international markets can also provide incentives to expand production, improve quality and adopt internationally recognised standards.
Sanitary standards remain critical
Tariff reductions alone are not enough to establish a successful agricultural export market.
Fresh produce must also meet strict sanitary and phytosanitary requirements covering food safety, plant health and biosecurity.
South Africa and China are therefore continuing cooperation on agricultural health and biosecurity issues, including foot-and-mouth disease.
The combination of tariff preferences and technical market-access agreements is important because it gives exporters a clearer pathway into the Chinese market while protecting both countries’ agricultural sectors.
Strengthening South Africa-China trade
The cherry agreement forms part of broader economic cooperation between South Africa and China under the Framework Agreement on Economic Partnership for Shared Development.
For South Africa, expanding agricultural exports to China supports broader efforts to diversify the economy, increase non-mineral exports and create more opportunities in rural areas.
China, meanwhile, offers South African producers access to a large consumer market with growing demand for imported agricultural products.
A growing export opportunity
South Africa’s agricultural sector now has an opportunity to build on the opening of the Chinese cherry market by expanding the range and volume of products it exports to the country.
If blueberry market access is finalised as expected, the two developments could further strengthen South Africa’s position in China’s fresh-produce market.
The longer-term opportunity will depend on producers maintaining consistent quality, meeting China’s food-safety requirements and developing reliable supply chains capable of delivering fresh produce competitively.
For South African agriculture, however, the direction is clear: greater market access and zero-tariff opportunities are creating new pathways for agricultural exports, investment and rural economic growth.