Zespri logo on organic

Kiwifruit marketer Zespri international has reacted strongly to recent calls by New Zealand export group Turners & Growers to deregulate the single-desk export structure which is currently employed by the New Zealand kiwifruit business, and crucially it has received the support not only of New Zealand kiwifruit producers but also the country's Agriculture and Forestry Minister.

Carol Ward, Zespri's director of corporate and grower services, said the idea of deregulating the New Zealand kiwifruit industry was one that was not supported by growers, the post-harvest sector, the company’s international marketing experts or the government. Put simply, she said, deregulation was 'not on the agenda'.

Ms Ward added that Zespri would be happy for Turners & Growers, which currently accounts for less than 1 per cent of the industry, to develop additional collaborative marketing proposals if they could be shown to increase overall wealth to New Zealand generally and to the country's kiwifruit growers specifically. 'Like any Zespri supplier and shareholder, Turners & Growers has a role to play in the kiwifruit industry, but a 1 percent player cannot expect to determine policy for the whole industry,' she explained.

Meanwhile Peter Ombler, president of NZ Kiwifruit Growers Incorporated, has rejected calls for the country's kiwifruit industry structure to be changed. “New Zealand kiwifruit growers will ultimately decide the future of this industry and there is generally no grower support for deregulation,” he said. “New Zealand growers are the owners of the kiwifruit industry with over NS$3.8bn (€1.71bn) invested and the majority are shareholders of Zespri.”

He continued: “Many growers remember their poor returns a couple decades ago, when there were multi exporters, before growers made the decision to move to the current industry structure with Zespri as their marketer.'

In a recent survey, 84 per cent of growers said they wanted the current structure retained for their continued success, while a further 10 per cent agreed that it was important. “Ironically, many kiwifruit growers who are also apple growers are most vocal in their support for the current industry structure, following on from their experiences of the deregulation of the apple industry,” said Mr Ombler.

New Zealand's Agriculture and Forestry Minister David Carter has also added his own support for Zespri, stating in the Bay of Plenty Times that deregulation of the kiwifruit sector was not at present in the government's agenda. He also confirmed that a position paper submitted in support of deregulation had 'no legal status' and had been produced by T&G on its own initiative.

“Turners & Growers would need to demonstrate substantial grower support before the government would consider any changes to the kiwifruit current single point of entry status,' explained Mr Carter. 'The government is committed to supporting the industry structure which delivers the best results for New Zealand kiwifruit growers and the New Zealand economy. Currently I believe that the majority of growers do support Zespri's single-desk marketing status.'