Seeka packhouse

Leading New Zealand kiwifruit supplier Seeka has reported disappointing results for the full year ended 31 March, with profits more than halving to NZ$2.6m from NZ$5.5m in the previous year.

A fall in orchard income was attributed to lower market pricing, the high New Zealand dollar against other trading partners and high supply chain and compliance costs, according to stuffit.co.nz.

Group revenue for the period grew to NZ$107.4m from NZ$98.1m during the previous year, while cashflow jumped to NZ$5.3m following the sale of South Auckland Pack and Cool, up from NZ$4.3m.

Additionally, the group reported record harvest figures for 2007, with green kiwifruit volumes up 18 per cent to 70.1m trays and gold kiwifruit volumes rising 15 per cent to 98.1m trays.

Seeka CEO Michael Franks said that the group was looking to future improvements rather than past results. 'The company has restructured the post-harvest division to deliver better fruit performance and this, along with fundamental changes to the contractual terms with Seeka Growers Ltd, will deliver improved financial returns to both growers and the company,' he said.

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