Raymond Sharp has been elected as chairman of New Zealand kiwifruit packer EastPack Ltd.

A former Bay of Plenty Community Trust chairman, Sharp has worked as a rural accountant for over 30 years. He took over the chairman ship following the retirement of Don Atkinson.

Mike Ashby, managing director of ESP Programme (North) Ltd and a former chief operating officer at Southern Cross Healthcare, is joining the board as a commercial director.

EastPack, which handles 14 million trays of kiwifruit a year, says it is on track to improve its 2007 performance, following a tough 2006.