The Fresh Carriers Hayward Medal was awarded to Dr David Steven on Friday, recognising his work to fundamentally shift how the kiwifruit industry manages pests and disease, improving environmental outcomes and underscoring market confidence in Zespri Kiwifruit.
Kiwifruit Industry Advisory Committee chairman and Zespri director Paul Jones presented the medal at the gala dinner for the kiwifruit industry's Momentum conference, recognising the enormous impact of Dr Steven's lifetime of service to the kiwifruit industry as the industry celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Zespri brand.
"David developed the Integrated Pest Management programme, known as KiwiGreen, back in 1991 which fundamentally shifted how the kiwifruit industry manages diseases and pests, and changed the philosophy of agrichemical use forever.
It revolutionised horticulture around the world and 26 years later KiwiGreen still defines the way we use agrichemicals and manage our orchards.
It also moved the industry towards using more environmentally-friendly agrichemicals to target specific pests and diseases, resulting in greater biodiversity in the orchard," says Mr Jones.