DAR ES SALAAM, June 18 -- THE first banana shipment to South Africa will carry more than fruit. It will carry Tanzanias ambition to turn one of its oldest crops into a modern export business.

This development comes as the country has secured formal entry into the South African banana market.

Consequently, its ambitions will be immediately tested by the structure of the market it is entering.

South Africa already boasts one of the most organised and sophisticated fresh produce markets in Africa.

It imports significant volumes of bananas to meet domestic demand, supplied mainly by Mozambique and Eswatini, countries that have spent years building production and export systems.

In such systems, bananas are not only grown. They are select...