Zespri sold around 93 million trays last season in 53 countries around the world as the industry recovered from the impact of Psa, up from 86 million trays in 2013.
"Strong growth is predicted for Zespri in coming years, as SunGold volumes increase and targeted marketing campaigns have been developed around the world to build our brand and familiarise consumers with Zespri SunGold," President of Global Sales and Marketing, Daniel Mathieson, told FreshPlaza."We’ve enjoyed a great response from customers and consumers regarding the great taste and sweet juiciness of SunGold. Our teams have worked hard to develop gold sales in new markets in developing economies, as well as maintaining and building sales in the key traditional markets of Japan and Europe. Work is ongoing to educate customers and consumers that SunGold is another premium variety from Zespri," explains Mathieson.
Zespri is at the top quality end of the kiwifruit market, offering a premium, healthy choice for consumers.
Kiwifruit offers powerful health benefits for consumers, however the wider category is challenged by variable fruit quality. Zespri ‘s aim is to grow the size of the global kiwifruit category. "We have partnered with growers around the world to create a high-quality, sustainable supply chain to keep premium Zespri Kiwifruit on shop shelves 12-months of the year."
In Zespri's major markets (eg Japan, Taiwan, Spain), kiwifruit has grown to become one of the top 10 consumed fruits, as consumers focus on health and nutrition.
The company engages with consumers through health communication to drive repeat purchases and will continue investment in health R&D. "We also link market incentives to grower payments to continually drive grower performance to deliver the fantastic-tasting fruit our consumers want. On-orchard management supports our premium market position," said Mathieson.
"We continue to serve and develop new opportunities in our long-standing developed markets of Japan and Europe. Japan accounted for around one-third of gold volume last season, with strong forecast growth over the next five years."
Zespri is developing new markets in rapidly-developing economies, including China, the Middle East and Brazil, targeting the fast-growing numbers of middle-income earners who want tasty, safe, fresh, healthy produce.
The company's sales in China have increased at around 19 percent a year from 1999 and are forecast to continue at this growth rate until 2020, to become Zespri’s number one market in a few years’ time. China is one of the largest gold markets for Zespri, with strong forecast growth in gold sales.
Looking forward to this season Zespri anticipates SunGold volumes of over 50 million trays by 2018. This will change the green/gold balance in their portfolio to be more heavily weighted towards gold.
While the NZ dollar’s fall against the US dollar has been good for growers in general, the same cannot be said for the Euro and the yen, which both remain at historically high levels. "Zespri has purchased hedging against the major currencies to limit our exposure to currency headwinds which expires over the next year. This will not impact the volumes exported but does impact on grower returns," concludes Mathieson.
For more information:
Rachel Lynch
Zespri International Limited
Tel: +64 7 572 7757
Email: rachel.lynch@zespri.com