"It is going very well for our own varieties, especially for Jazz with sales up year on year to the point where we don't have enough fruit. This is really positive," explains Darren Drury, Executive General Manager for Pipfruit at T&G. "Leading into the New Zealand season we are having to carefully manage our volumes so as not to disappoint our customers - we need to be realistic about volumes."
The overall New Zealand crop is up one million boxes on last year. This is a combination of a few things, but mostly new plantings. "Most of the growth is in new varieties for the Asian markets, with traditional varieties such as Braeburn having stable supply while Royal Gala continues to grow and is still the number one variety grown in New Zealand with demand from both traditional and new markets,” according to Drury. "Some growers have focussed on New Zealand Queen and this variety has grown in volume. Envy plantings are also increasing in New Zealand on the back of strong grower returns not just in Asian markets but also in North America with progress also being made in the EU and the UK."
Demand for the Envy apple variety in the US is also growing, T&G are pushing a big drive in the US at the moment for the Envy Apple variety.
"Envy ticks all the boxes. It’s a big sweet red apple and feedback has been unbelievable, again we just don't have enough fruit. This variety really delivers on the eating experience. We do have great support from our grower base in Washington who are very exited about the future of this apple," said Drury.
He believes successful branding has played a big part in the success of the Envy variety and T&G are very proud of it. They were the first to go with the glossy box format; it is high class and works very well with the apple.
The Envy apple is now available in the UK and is supplied from orchards in the southeast of England and by New Zealand during the import window. Drury notes there is a section of the UK market that do prefer sweeter apples so they are having success with a couple of retailers with small volumes. T&G are very excited about new commercial plantings of Envy in Italy, Spain and France, with the Italian crop available in the current season with its first marketable crop. Feedback from both growers and customers has been excellent with growers very pleased at the yield/return equation, while customers have been excited at the eating experience. T&G are targeting southern Europe with Envy, while Jazz is more popular in Northern Europe.
These brands of apples are all about consistency; how can you achieve this in different growing regions? Drury admits this is a challenge given the wide variation in growing conditions – climate, soil etc. "We do a lot of work with growers in orchards, as our varieties perform differently to many commodity varieties. Our aim is to give our consumers an enjoyable consistent eating experience."
T&G will open a new office in Thailand in March together with Zespri, to market T&G's apples and Zespri kiwifruit. T&G have focussed on Asian markets and, in partnership with Vachamon in Thailand, have grown quickly through focussing on trade marketing and social media campaigns. There is consistent growth in this market as real incomes rise and imported fruits become more sought after.
Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a good thing for New Zealand exports according to Drury. "It will further strengthen the protocols and legal frameworks within which we operate.”
Japan is seen as an important market for New Zealand apples in the near future.
"We have been exporting apples there since 2008. The protocol is very difficult and costly but due to the hard work of our post-harvest team in New Zealand, we have managed to make it viable."
Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia are all interesting new prospective markets for T&G.
Planting of T&G varieties continues to increase for both Jazz and Envy, with Envy growth mainly in New Zealand and the US, while Europe continues to plant Jazz.
"This growth in both demand and value continues as our varieties are becoming more entrenched in key markets and we need to continue with new plantings to ensure we have enough supply. T&G is proud of its association with the breeding programs that enabled Enza to commercialise varieties such as Braeburn, Royal Gala, Jazz and Envy."
This is a major focus for T&G Pipfruit as it continues to search for new varieties that can offer consumers an enhanced eating experience, with many varieties currently in various stages of testing across the globe.
"It is a major plank in our growth strategy, Jazz and Envy are outstanding apples with unique attributes ensuring they stand out from other apples on the market. We are committed to investment in new varieties as we search for the next great variety," concludes Drury.
For more information:
Darren Drury
T&G
Email: Darren.Drury@turnersandgrowers.com