Zespri's final charter vessel of the 2025 New Zealand kiwifruit season has departed from the Port of Tauranga bound for Japan. The vessel Whero is carrying more than 1.4 million trays, equivalent to over 5,000 tons, of Zespri Green kiwifruit and is expected to arrive in Tokyo in mid-November before continuing to Kobe.
© Zespri
The shipment marks Zespri's 60th charter vessel for the 2025 season, transporting New Zealand-grown Green, SunGold, and RubyRed kiwifruit to more than 50 global markets. The company's final container shipments are scheduled to depart in the coming weeks. This season also saw an increase in container usage, with 24,000 containers shipped compared to 20,500 in 2024.
According to CEO Jason Te Brake, the 2025 crop reached around 215 million trays, or more than 770,000 tons, the largest harvest to date. "Our markets have been performing well, with record sales weeks in Europe and steady demand in the US and China throughout September during the Mid-Autumn Festival," he said.
© Zespri
Sales for SunGold kiwifruit in Europe concluded last week, while Green kiwifruit sales will continue through to the end of November. The season has also ended for SunGold in Korea and will finish in late November or early December across other Asian markets and the United States.
Te Brake noted that despite the higher production volume, up from more than 195 million trays last year, sales performance remained steady. The company expects a smooth transition to fruit from its Northern Hemisphere production regions, which are forecast to supply more than 30 million trays in the 2025/26 season, including 24 million trays of SunGold and 7 million trays of Green kiwifruit. The transition to Northern Hemisphere-grown SunGold has already begun in Europe.
© Zespri
As the 2025 season concludes, planning for the 2026 season and the implementation of Zespri's 2035 strategy are underway in collaboration with post-harvest partners and the New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers Inc. (NZKGI). The long-term strategy focuses on brand-led demand, global supply development, and product portfolio planning.
The 2035 strategy is expected to be launched at Zespri's Momentum 2026 Conference in February.
For more information:
Anna Cross
Zespri
Tel: +64 27 316 7777
Email: [email protected]
www.zespri.com
