As harvest gets underway, South African producers face rolling blackouts

Most South African olive oil producers started harvesting in April amid the challenges created by the frequent electric blackouts, known as load shedding. These power outages also plagued producers in the previous season but did not prevent many from enjoying a bumper harvest. Still, this year’s load shedding has affected irrigation and delayed some producers as they milled, which can affect olive oil quality. Other agricultural sectors, such as wine, have also been affected by power failures. During the current year, power outages of varying severity have been reported daily by Eksom, the state-run electricity company. Even in Pretoria, the country’s administrative capital, power outages in several areas hinder daily operations of infrastructure, public institutions and private activities. In February, the government declared a disaster to address the crisis, which weighs heavily on agriculture and food producers. “[For olive growers], the main challenge so far has been the ...