Kiwifruit harvest set for record high
The first shipment of kiwifruit for the season headed out of Tauranga for China on Friday, heralding the start of another record breaking harvest, which should result in sales of more than $2 billion.
This year’s New Zealand-grown crop is expected to total about 143 million trays, 20 million above last year and more than the previous record of 129 million set in 2016.
The fruit loaded on to the Klipper Stream are the first of what should be 500,000 tonnes by the time the harvest is finally in.
Exporter Zespri said it would announce the current season’s sales figures in May.
Chief executive Dan Mathieson said both the company’s two biggest markets, Japan and China, were forecast to grow strongly. Zespri is also looking for solid growth across the rest of Asia as well as Europe and North America, where supply did not meet demand last year.
‘‘Demand for safe, healthy fruit continues to grow exponentially in China, in terms of both volume and value. However, our Japanese market is going great guns as well – we’ve seen a 30 per cent sales growth there over the past four years.’’
New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers said its 2500 members were gearing up to harvest the crop off 13,500 hectares.
Questions have been raised over whether there will be enough labour to handle the work.
NZKGI chief executive Nikki Johnson said the sector was looking at a shortfall in international students after changes to government policy.
‘‘Last year was a lower volume season for us so we didn’t have a worker shortage, and in fact we haven’t had a worker shortage for some time.’’
‘‘But there is a significant increase in volumes and the numbers of international students has dropped off. That’s going to have an impact,’’ Johnson said.
The makeup of workers in the kiwifruit industry is New Zealanders (60 per cent), international students (15 per cent), international working holiday workers (10 per cent), and the Regional Seasonal Employment scheme (14 per cent).
Kiwifruit is the top horticultural export. About 80 per cent, or 102 million of the trays, are grown in the Bay of Plenty.