Storyline: South Africa has signed a landmark stone fruit trade deal with China, enabling local producers and exporters to gain access to this crucial Asian market and offset the impact of damaging U.S. tariffs. The landmark deal was signed in Shanghai earlier this month between South Africa's Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen and Sun Meijun, the head of China's General Administration of Customs (GAC), with Steenhuisen describing it as a "major breakthrough" for South African fruit producers and exporters. The agreement opens up the Chinese market for the first time to five varieties of South African stone fruit, including apricots, nectarines, peaches, plums and prunes, and comes after the U.S. slapped a 30-percent tariff on all South African exports back in August. South Africa is already renowned for its stone fruits with much of its exports heading to the Middle East and Europe, and officials say they are delighted that the new deal now grants access to one of the world's largest agricultural import markets. "We are producing very high-quality stone fruit in South Africa and therefore we also seek export destinations. And because China is such a good trading partner with South Africa, we are extremely excited and grateful that we could manage to sign the protocol, as this will create jobs in South Africa," said Jan Hendrik Venter, director of Plant Health under the Department of Agriculture. The agreement could generate over 23 million U.S. dollars in export revenue within the next five years, with the possibility of doubling that amount over the next decade, according to the Department of Agriculture. It is also expected to create over 650 jobs in South Africa's agricultural sector, including on farms, in packing facilities and across the transport and packaging operations sector. As China's demand for peaches and plums continue to surge, with the country last year importing well over 20 million cartons, producers in South Africa are hopeful they can deliver a stable supply to meet the needs of the huge Chinese market. "Having signed this contract with China means that you need to be there with consistent supply, you cannot one year have and the other year not have, so you have to be consistent in terms of quality and quantity. And I think the industry is ready for that, especially what happens with the export possibilities to the United States," said Kobus Laubscher, an agricultural economist. The country says it is also aiming to export cherries to the Chinese market in the upcoming harvest cycle. Shotlist: Cape Town, South Africa - Recent: 1. Various of fruits in supermarket, consumers 2. SOUNDBITE (English) Jan Hendrik Venter, Director of Plant Health, Department of Agriculture, South Africa (ending with shot 3): "We are producing very high-quality stone fruit in South Africa and therefore we also seek export destinations. And because China is such a good trading partner with South Africa, we are extremely excited and grateful that we could manage to sign the protocol, as this will create jobs in South Africa." 3. Various of farmers working in field 4. Various of farmers, agricultural vehicle 5. Agricultural vehicle transporting fruits 6. Various of fruits in supermarket 7. SOUNDBITE (English) Kobus Laubscher, agricultural economist (starting with shot 6): "Having signed this contract with China means that you need to be there with consistent supply, you cannot one year have and the other year not have, so you have to be consistent in terms of quality and quantity. And I think the industry is ready for that, especially what happens with the export possibilities to the United States." 8. Farmer driving agricultural vehicle 9. Farmer working in greenhouse. [Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland]