Refined industry structure will build on existing organisations to represent the vegetable industry better
The peak industry bodies representing New Zealand’s vegetable industries have come together to establish The New Zealand Vegetable Council (NZVeg), a new entity designed to represent the vegetable industry better.
A refined industry structure has been created by Onions NZ, Process Vegetables NZ, TomatoesNZ and Vegetables NZ, with the support of HortNZ and will come into operation on 1 April 2026.
“The New Zealand Vegetable Council (NZVeg) has been set up to focus effort and ensure the levies collected from vegetable growers go further,” said transition board chair, Kevin Wilcox.
“NZVeg will serve and service vegetable sector product groups while also representing a collective voice. We are a NZ$1.1bn industry but have presented ourselves as four to five smaller sectors, which can be difficult to engage with. By coming together as a unified sector, while maintaining our current boards and levies, we can get the best of both worlds.”
Wilcox said the New Zealand vegetable industry is at a crossroads.
“Growers are under pressure due to policy settings that do not support vegetable growing. At the same time, the cost of growing vegetables is ever increasing, which is squeezing margins and affecting the viability,” said Wilcox.
“Without more certainty and a return to viability, growers can’t really be expected to invest and continue to grow healthy vegetables for New Zealand and export markets.
“By coming together under the NZVeg umbrella, the vegetable sector can tell its story better and leverage the sector’s scale and importance for the New Zealand economy.”
NZVeg will be an umbrella organisation, repurposing Horticulture Executive Services (HESL), which currently employs some vegetable product group staff. This means the vegetable industry bodies are not adding an additional organisation but refining and optimising the current structure.
Existing product group boards and levies will be maintained, but they will come together as a unified sector to give the vegetable sector a united voice to speak to the government in Wellington.
“NZVeg will work across grower support, policy, research and extension, biosecurity and market access to build a resilient and viable industry that feeds the nation and competes globally,” said Wilcox.
“It is being governed by a transition board and managed by operations manager, James Kuperus, while a chief executive officer is recruited.”
The creation of The New Zealand Vegetable Council is also designed to bring other benefits. With all staff under one entity, there will be no confusion for members over who to contact for different issues.
Combining resources will reduce duplication and provide scale, allowing NZVeg to have one consistent staff member to represent vegetable growers in Wellington and employ new technical leads and specialists. Trade and biosecurity have been identified as priority areas.
With the product group boards and levies maintained, the level of accountability back to members also remains the same.
ü No wrong door: With staff in one entity, there is no wrong door for members. In the past, there was at times confusion over who to contact for different issues
ü Reduced duplication: One staff member attending meetings in Wellington, representing vegetable growers
ü Technical specialists: Scale to employ technical leads and specialists, with the initial priority being trade and biosecurity.
ü Accountability maintained: With the product group boards and levies maintained, there is the same level of accountability back to members as before.
