A Promising Wine Grape Harvest for 2026 in South Africa

• 05 November 2025
• 0 Comments
• Agbiz
• Wandile Sihlobo

It appears that South Africa may have an excellent wine grape harvest and possibly a good wine season in 2025-26. This would be a welcome development, as the industry has faced various challenges in recent times and has also experienced a decline in its output.

Reading a newsletter this morning from South Africa Wine, an industry organisation, was refreshing. They stated that:

“ South Africa’s wine industry is gearing up for a promising 2026 harvest following favourable winter and spring conditions. Good rainfall, sufficient winter dormancy, and early spring warmth have supported healthy bud break and strong growth across most regions.

The 2025 post-harvest period set the stage well for 2026. Winter cold units were sufficient, canopies are healthy, and flower clusters in early cultivars look promising. Technical indicators point to a crop similar in size to 2025, despite shrinking vineyard surfaces and an increase in older vines.

Early assessments suggest excellent quality potential. White cultivars such as Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, and Chardonnay show sufficient yields, while noble reds are developing promising clusters. New vineyard plantings further strengthen the outlook for a productive season.”

In essence, we are ending a better year, 2025, and looking to another more promising season of 2026 in the wine industry. Importantly, the outlook for other fruits also looks positive.

I am writing this letter from Kakamas, on the banks of the Orange River, in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. The photo above is from one of the farms in the area. The grapes look excellent, and yield prospects are positive.

The mood in the region is upbeat, especially as port logistics have also improved. Our fruit industry is export-oriented, and logistics matter most.

In addition to the encouraging developments in fruit, we have a promising summer grains and oilseeds season ahead. There is a chance of La Niña rains, which will support the season. Planting is underway across the various areas of the country. So, these early observations suggest that we are looking at another positive year for some agricultural subsectors.

Still, this doesn’t mean everything is well. The livestock industry continues to struggle with foot-and-mouth disease. I will say more about that later. But I had to flag that things are all positive; hence, we have consistently been talking about an uneven recovery.

Email: wandile@agbiz.co.za

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