SA’s Du Roi Laboratory marks three decades of growth and innovation

SOUTH AFRICA – Du Roi Laboratory, a leading South African banana nursery, recently celebrated its 30th anniversary, a milestone achieved by only a small percentage of businesses.

This milestone was marked by a gala dinner, where founder Abs van Rooyen reflected on the journey that began in a modest banana tissue lab run out of a farmhouse garage in Letsitele outlined the feature story by Fresh Plaza.

“Only around 7% of businesses make it to thirty years,” Van Rooyen told the gathered guests. He recalled the early days when the lab, which he took over, was producing only 650,000 banana plants annually.

At that time, the South African banana industry was highly competitive, with four labs vying for market share.

One of Van Rooyen’s significant moves was recruiting Anne Davson in 1994 to manage the laboratory.

“One of my best moves in life was to get Anne involved,” he said. Under the leadership of Davson and long-time laboratory manager Jane Ramothwala, production skyrocketed to 1.6 million plants within eighteen months.

Today, Du Roi Laboratory has the capacity to produce over eight million banana plants each year. This expansion is supported by the broader Du Roi group of nurseries and ANB Investments, which has positioned the lab at the forefront of technological advancements and research in the banana industry.

“The banana customer is a very special one,” Van Rooyen noted. “You’ve got to plant at the right time, select suckers correctly, and the harvest is fairly well-predicted, except in subtropical areas with unpredictable weather.”

Van Rooyen emphasized the importance of Du Roi’s commitment to its customers and the special bond they share with banana growers.

The lab not only provides high-quality plantlets but also offers production advice and infield consultation to help farmers achieve the best results.

The 30th-anniversary celebration also honored the contributions of key individuals who played significant roles in the lab’s success.

Davson and Ramothwala were awarded lifetime achievement recognition for their dedication and leadership.

“Their success lay in incorporating the aspirations and requirements of the lab’s employees into the workplace,” Van Rooyen said, highlighti\ng that 98% of the lab’s employees are women, some of whom have been with the company since before 1994.

Another notable figure in Du Roi’s history is Alan Davson, who joined in 1996. Lauded 9his ab
ility to remember the names and familial details of clients and his skills as a pilot, Alan was instrumental in opening new markets that have become key to Du Roi’s continued success.

Du Roi Laboratory has also been at the forefront of innovation in banana cultivation. The lab benefited from the expertise of Dr. John Robinson, former director of tropical crops at the Agricultural Research Council in Nelspruit. Dr. Robinson, who joined Du Roi, developed several new banana selections through somaclonal variation, many of which are now commercially available. His work on pest and disease protocols remains a gold standard in the industry.

Looking forward, Du Roi continues to monitor advancements in genome editing and promising new banana varieties.

These topics were key points of discussion at the annual banana growers’ technical workshop, which the laboratory organizes.