Positive first year for ZAG fund
As it enters its second year, Zespri says the first year of the Zespri Innovation Fund (ZAG), has been “really positive”.
Zespri chief executive Jason Te Brake says the latest forecast reflects both the strong season start and the competition seen more recently in markets, including from summerfruit.
“The industry put a lot of work into getting off to a really strong start to the season to meet early season demand and that’s set us up well in a year where we have a lot more fruit to sell,” Te Brake says.
He says that while strong competition is challenging around this time of year, Zespri is already seeing signs that kiwifruit is moving off shelves and that trend is expected to continue over the next few weeks.
“The fact we’re on track for a strong lift in per hectare returns across all varieties this season, and record returns for Green and Organic Green growers, is a testament to the hard work the industry has put in following a really challenging period,” he says.
Te Brake confirms that with a total crop of over 190 million trays to sell, Zespri is focused on finishing the second half of the season strongly.
“This season’s improved growing conditions have meant grower yields have increased and we’ve got a lot more fruit to sell. But quality and demand are strong and we’re well placed to deliver a strong result to growers,” he says.
“That will also be supported by the exciting campaigns our in-market teams have developed featuring our Kiwi Brothers as we look to take advantage of strong demand for our fruit and maximise the value we return to growers,” he adds.
Te Brake says increasing competition reinforces the importance of Zespri’s Global Supply (ZGS) strategy, set up by growers more than 20 years ago.
ZGS involves Zespri working with offshore growers in Italy, France, Japan, Korea, and Greece to provide kiwifruit for 12 months of the year. This allows Zespri to have counter-seasonal supply in place to complement the New Zealand season and drive value for New Zealand growers.
With the maximum 5,000ha of offshore SunGold plantings now allocated and the gap between supply and demand growing, the industry is discussing the potential expansion of its ZGS programme to protect value for the industry.
Te Brake says Zespri has had good discussions with the industry in recent months on the importance of ZGS and its role in protecting grower value as it faces increasing competition.
“The next stage of these conversations over the coming months will look at what a potential expansion of our ZGS programme might look like, as we make a decision as an industry on how ZGS can continue to deliver value for our industry,” he says.
Zespri is now seeking industry feedback on potentially expanding the current 5,000 hectare cap by up to 420 additional hectares of SunGold Kiwifruit per year over six years across Italy, France, Japan, South Korea and Greece.
Te Brake says that depending on the nature of those conversations over the next few months, Zespri may consider formally seeking grower support for expanding ZGS via a Producer Vote which would require 75 percent support to proceed.
