Jan 24, 2018  -  The Indian market for avocados currently consists of some Indian produce and a major share of New Zealand Hass avocados. Thanks to promotions and in-store sampling, Indian consumers are becoming increasingly aware of the health benefits of Hass avocados. Therefore, demand for New Zealand avocados is increasing. The Indian importer IG International specialises in the marketing of New Zealand Hass avocados. The company is also going to introduce new varieties with different packaging formats from Peru. Peruvian avocados are necessary to continue the momentum of the New Zealand season, which will soon be coming to an…

Jan 20, 2018  -  “This represents a real revolution in the blueberry industry to us. In a couple of years, those without this technology will be left on the sidelines.”  That was the comment from Cristobal Duke, Managing Director of Collipulli (Chile), on UNITEC Blueberry Vision technology back at the end of 2016.

Jan 16, 2018  - One of Australasia's biggest blueberry partnerships says it is excited by the potential of new varieties that are set to hit the market in the near future.  BerryCo NZ has secured the New Zealand rights to the genetics from Mountain Blue Orchards (MBO) in Australia, which General Manager Vaughan Judkins says is a world leading Southern Highbush breeding programme, and several new developments are on the horizon for the industry. The MBO supplied Eureka brand, with its jumbo size, which is currently a big a hit with both the health conscious across Australia and the international…

Jan 10, 2018  -  Long before the start of the harvest the New Zealand avocado crop was estimated to be down by approximately 50% due to the bi-annual nature of the trees. The latest estimate has the New Zealand export crop at approximately 2.2m trays down from over 5m in the previous year.

Dec 13, 2017  - The apple industry is still not sure of the cost of a fungicide contamination which has threatened to destroy 35 hectares of apples in Hawke's Bay and lop several million dollars off the value of the export harvest. The issue first came to light when Nelson-based Adama New Zealand was alerted by a Hawke's Bay orchardist on October 5 to a potential issue with blemishes discovered on the leaves and young buds of some Royal Gala tree varieties. The company, part of a world-leading crop protection group, began an investigation which led less than a fortnight…

Dec 12, 2017 - : Steve Trickett has joined AVOCO’s senior management team to expand on market development in Asia and oversee grower communications at home. A familiar face to many avocado growers, Steve has joined the company as Marketing and Communications Manager and is responsible for market planning and performance with focus on new and developing markets where fruit carries the AVANZA brand. He will support the existing sales and marketing team, oversee contestable fund applications and develop AVOCO’s communications and profile among the grower community. Steve’s 35-year experience in the export sector includes stints at Fruitfed Export, NZ…

Dec 12, 2017  - The New Zealand citrus industry’s ongoing commitment to working with Delytics Ltd to increase fruit quality has resulted in the majority of their navel oranges being liked by consumers in 2017, despite a challenging growing season.  Supermarket monitoring showed approximately 85% (6 out of 7) of all New Zealand navel oranges met the New Zealand Citrus Growers’ Inc (NZCGI) minimum maturity standard in 2017, compared to 67% in 2015 before new processes were implemented. This year’s average weekly acceptability ranged from 78% to 95%, and stayed above 90% for three out of nine sampling weeks. New…

Nov 29, 2017  -  KORU® is a new apple variety which has been grown in New Zealand for a few years now and exported to the US market. Now it is also being grown in the States and the area will increase considerably in years to come writes Nichola Watson for FreshPlaza. "We import this apple in February and March," explains Jim Allen from New York Apple Sales. "Now we are growing it in the States too. It is an excellent eating apple, a cross between the Braeburn and Fuji apples. The Fuji gives it that high flavour and sugars…

Nov 24, 2017  -  The investment group will grow the niche export apple brand Rockit, which is a mini-apple under licence by Rockit Global.  One of the Rockit Global's challenges has been growing enough apples to meet global demand despite production lifting 40 per cent on last year.  In spite of higher numbers, the crop sold out several months earlier than last year and delivered a price increase to growers. The miniature snack apples, sold in a plastic tube, are grown under license in nine countries and sold in airports, sports stadiums, and in cafes in 29 countries. MyFarm chief…

17 Nov 2017  -  Dealing with irregular bearing is a problem the New Zealand avocado industry needs to solve, according to AVOCO the nation's largest marketing company for the fruit. Martin Napper, Export Marketing Executive at Primor Produce, part of the AVOCO venture which owns the AVANZA brand, says at a time when consumption and demand is increasing strongly, the market still provides some inconsistency. "At the moment it seems that we spend one year building markets and the next apologising for short supply," Mr Napper said. "A very frustrating situation especially when demand is so strong in all of…

14 Nov 2017  -  The mother of all produce sanitisation machines has arrived in Australia, fresh off the ship from Germany, as the country takes its food safety technology to the next level. Dubbed ‘The Food Safety Supercharger’, the custom-made 250-kilogram test-unit creates a stream of ‘supercharged air’ by applying an electric current to normal air. Using this disruptive technology, it has the capacity to kill microbial pathogens on the surface of fresh produce and nuts, without leaving any chemical residues. Housed at a NSW Department of Primary Industries laboratory, this world-first machine aims to eliminate microbial contaminants such as…