New legislation to increase consumer confidence in organic products will benefit the domestic and export New Zealand
horticulture industry, Horticulture New Zealand says.
‘The new legislation will create a standard that will give consumers greater confidence that the organic fruit and
vegetables they are buying has been grown to a rigorous and consistent standard,’ says HortNZ President, Barry O’Neil.
‘At the same time, the new standard will facilitate exports, because it will be accepted overseas without the need for
further, market by market, requirements.’
Barry says while the organic fruit and vegetable sector in New Zealand is relatively small, like the rest of the
organics sector, it is growing almost twice as fast as the conventional sector, up 8.1% per year compared to 4.8% per
year for conventionally grown produce (Source: 2018 New Zealand Organic Sector Report).
‘Without a doubt, the new standard will help us grow the market for organic fruit and vegetables, in New Zealand and
overseas. Organic export kiwifruit is already a success story, with increasing interest being shown in organic export
apples and onions in recent seasons.’