Zespri has moved to distance itself from a smuggling scandal involving one of its Chinese importers, Dalian Yidu.
As Asiafruit revealed last month, Dalian Yidu’s chairman Liu Zhi and his younger brother were arrested by the anti-smuggling bureau within Chinese Customs on 16 January.
Zespri chief executive told the New Zealand Herald that the single desk marketer had suspended its business relationshipwith the importer and would “continue to monitor the situation.” A Zespri spokesperson added that Dalian Yidu was one of the company’s four Chinese importers and handled less than 5 per cent of Zespri's total Chinese volume.
'Zespri's New Zealand supply season to our markets, including China, finished quite a while ago and Zespri has no financial exposure to Yidu,” the spokesperson told the Bay of Plenty Times. 'There is nothing to indicate this investigation involves Zespri kiwifruit.'
The Bay of Plenty Times added that Zespri and Dalian Yidu operated on a buy-sell arrangement, not the contentious consignment basis that landed Zespri in hot water following an under-invoicing scandal involving the company’s former Chinese importer Shanghai Neuhof Trade Company.
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