On January 12, 2023, a refrigerated cargo ship “Silver Bergen” arrived at the port of St. Petersburg with the first batch of fruits from South Africa (Cape Town) in the new year. In total, 2,000 tons of various fruits (grapes, peaches, plums, avocados, etc.) were delivered. The solemn event dedicated to the arrival of the vessel was attended by Vladimir Borisenko, Honorary Consul of the Republic of South Africa in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, Vladimir Zapevalov, Ambassador at Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Irina Karpenko, Head of the Department of External Relations, as well as representatives of the South African Embassy in Russian Federation, entrepreneurs and journalists.

In the photo: Fateev M.I.( Business Council  Russia-Africa), Douw Vermaak ( South African Embassy in Russian Federation ), Borisenko V.V. (Honorary Consulate of South Africa in St. Petersburg and Leningrad region), Zapevalov V.V. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation).

Fruits are the main export item from South Africa to Russia and together with grain imports from Russia to South Africa account for half of the trade turnover between the two countries. This means that cooperation between our countries in this area provides jobs and earnings for more than a million agricultural workers in South Africa and provides valuable vitamin products to millions of Russian consumers.