Delays at the port of Cape Town have held back two vessels loaded with grapes, stonefruit, pomefruit and the last blueberries of the season.
"Vessels were delayed for longer than we'd expected," says a grape exporter, but imminent departures are expected during this week, winds permitting.
The Santa Cruz and the MSC Palak, both on the Europe Express Service, are loaded with fruit and have been at South African ports for over two weeks.
Winds over the Cape Peninsula have been very strong, as usual for this time of the year, during which time activities cease in the interest of safety.
Omissions of Cape Town Port are currently not rampant, but there are five vessels waiting outside the port to come in.
The cranes received from Los Angeles are not able to relieve the pressure yet as they still need to be commissioned and operators, habituated to a different model of crane, trained in their use.