Kiwifruit Industry Pitches to NZ Prime Minister

ZESPRI Presents Kiwifruit Industry Plan to NZ Prime Minister

The Prime Minister of New Zealand, Hon. John Key, visited ZESPRI’s head office in Mount Maunganui today to officially receive the ZESPRI 2025 document: ZESPRI’s commitment to triple the size of the business within 15 years. He was accompanied by Bay of Plenty MP and Health Minister Hon. Tony Ryall, and Tauranga MP Mr Simon Bridges.

ZESPRI, the world’s most successful horticultural marketer and New Zealand’s largest horticultural exporter, aspires to triple export earnings to NZ$3 billion by 2025, primarily through productivity gains rather than by increasing resource use.

ZESPRI CEO Lain Jager said: “The commitment to significantly grow the kiwifruit industry and export earnings, plays right to the heart of achieving New Zealand’s productivity targets and Horticulture NZ’s goal of creating a horticulture industry that is valued at NZ$10 billion by 2020.

“Industry developments such as the commercialisation of new kiwifruit varieties, a focus on value-added marketing and a unified collaborative industry structure coupled with innovative and sustainable orchard practices will be the key to our success.”

Mr Jager also said he was delighted with the Prime Minister’s comments, when speaking to ZESPRI staff and local media, that the Government would maintain the industry’s Single Point of Entry (SPE) system for as long as growers support it.

ZESPRI already has a significant track record of achieving growth, building the value of ZESPRI Kiwifruit export earnings to NZ$1.07 billion in under 10 years. With a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.8 percent, ZESPRI outperforms other industries such as dairy produce, meat, forest products, apples and wool.

ENDS

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