Analysing SA's Trade In Live Plants

The value output generated by trade in live plants has not increased at a similar rate to that of the horticulture sector as a whole. Yet this remains a subsector with much growth potential.

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The live plant industry consists of four different subsectors, namely bulbs, roots (including developed plants with live roots), cut flowers and foliage. The export value of live plants increased by 15% from R480 million in 2009 to more than R1,2 billion in 2018.

However, despite an average annual growth in value of 15%, the contribution of cut flowers and bulbs to total output by the horticulture sector or gross producer value (GPV) of the sector in South Africa declined over this period, while the total contribution of the horticultural industry to South Africa’s agriculture GPV increased (see Graph 1).

The horticultural sector’s contribution in terms of gross producer value increased from 25% in 2009 to 27,7% in 2018. But the contribution made by cut flowers and bulbs to the horticultural sector declined from 3,1% to 2,3%.

This indicates that cut flowers and bulbs have on average grown in value terms at a slower pace than the horticulture sector as a whole.

WINNERS AND LOSERS