Kiwifruits for Kiwis

The first known kiwifruit plants in New Zealand were grown near Whanganui. Alexander Allison, a sheep farmer, was fascinated by novel fruiting plants. In the early 1900s, he was given some Chinese gooseberry (aka kiwifruit) seeds by a woman whose sister was a missionary in China. Allison successfully grew the fruit in 1910. New Zealand is now the third largest kiwifruit-exporting country in the world. Kiwifruit is still grown in Whanganui, but most is now grown in the Bay of Plenty.