The New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers (NZKGI) commissioned economic analysts BERL to assess Zespri’s success on behalf of growers, eight years after growers overwhelmingly voted in favour of retaining the single point of entry (SPE) marketer. The report authors note that typically a single desk buyer can tend to be inefficient in several areas. That includes having less flexibility, lower levels of innovation and being difficult to assess for their true cost effectiveness in the absence of any purchasing competition.
But the report on Zespri says the marketer has broken the mould on single desk outcomes, delivering a strong international brand that has drawn in significant income for NZ kiwifruit growers and post-harvest processors. For growers and regions with the fruit, the outcome of the SPE has proven to be highly valuable.
The report compares kiwifruit’s gain in value as a crop over the years to the less-regulated apple industry. Between 2015 and 2019, apples’ orchard gate returns increased from $43,600 per hectare to $49,000 per hectare. Kiwifruit outpaced apples by 64% over the same period, enjoying an increase from $60,800 per hectare to $107,100 per hectare, peaking at $124,000 a hectare in 2021-22. This was also reflected in orchard value, with kiwifruit orchards worth $928,700 per hectare against $275,300 per hectare for apples.
The report’s authors note that the two crops earned similar export returns back in 2000, and that kiwifruit retained its single point of entry while the apple sector took an open, laissez faire approach to marketing.
Source: farmersweekly.co.nz
