Danny Bearsley has won the horticulture Bledisloe Cup for 2022.
Danny is credited with saving the Hawke’s Bay process vegetable industry in the 1990s. This industry now processes more
than 5,500 hectares of produce sourced from the Hawke’s Bay, Gisborne and Manawatu regions.
Danny’s horticulture career spans more than four decades. While he diversified into growing apples and kiwifruit, and
fresh broccoli in the 1990s, Danny has always maintained a healthy interest the process vegetable industry.
Today, Danny maintains his involvement in horticulture through the wine industry.
The horticulture Bledisloe Cup is awarded annually in recognition of an outstanding contribution to commercial growing
in New Zealand over decades.
‘We had some fantastic nominations this year,’ said HortNZ Vice President, Bernadine Balle-Guilleux, who presented the
award to Danny at a function in Christchurch on 4 August.
‘The nominations have really reflected the high calibre and long-term commitment of commercial fruit and vegetable
growers through New Zealand.’
Bernadine said HortNZ usually gives out its awards at the annual Horticulture Conference, but the conference had to be
cancelled this year due to the uncertainty created by Covid.
‘However, the HortNZ Board felt it was important to celebrate growers’ success in what has been another challenging
year.
‘As a result, we have been presenting this year’s awards at various grower events, and will conclude the presentations
at the HortNZ AGM in Nelson on 21 September.’