Editorial: Te Puke title fell short of greatness

Te Puke reclaimed its Kiwifruit Capital of the World slogan this week - complete with plans for a statue of a giant slice of the fruit on the town's main street.

The decision followed a branding battle that erupted after the popular slogan was put on the back burner in favour of a replacement "Goodness Grows Here".

That rebranding exercise started in 2013 and was partly a response to the devastating impact of the kiwifruit vine killing disease Psa on the area.

The aim of the Goodness Grows Here brand was to promote the area's fertile soils, its favourable climate and to counter perceptions the town was struggling.

The town's economic development group came up with the idea and it would be fair to say the brand did not go down well with everyone.

Some locals fought back. A petition asking for the move to be reversed gained 2562 signatures urging the retention of Te Puke's brand as the kiwifruit capital.

This week's announcement was seen as a victory by those who resisted the change, and good on them for doing so.

In my opinion, Goodness Grows Here has a nice ring to it but it doesn't encapsulate the town's status as a powerhouse of kiwifruit production.

This point was raised by the Creative Te Puke Forum which campaigned to keep the brand, fearing that the wider Te Puke area's brand of "Goodness Grows Here" could apply to lots of places in New Zealand.

For many people who live outside the region the town is synonymous with kiwifruit.

To remove the phrase from the town's branding was a big call and, in my view, it was always doomed to fail.

Kiwifruit Capital of the World proudly proclaims exactly what the town's claim to fame is.

The town and its surrounding orchards have played a major role in the economic boom that is under way in the region.

When the Bay of Plenty knocked Auckland off the top spot as New Zealand's best-performing region in the latest ASB/Main Report Regional Economic Scoreboard last month the kiwifruit sector, which has bounced back strongly from the Psa outbreak, was listed as one of the main drivers of the resurgent economy in the region.

Te Puke Economic Development Group chief executive Mark Boyle says the decision to recrown the town as the Kiwifruit Capital of the World was made after listening to community sentiment.

This week's branding announcement was accompanied by news that a giant slice of kiwifruit could sit outside Te Puke's railway station retail complex accompanied by the opening of a shop selling kiwifruit products, souvenirs and excursion tickets for kiwifruit tours.

Applying the Goodness Grows Here brand to the town went against the tide of the public opinion even if it continues to be the overall brand for the greater Te Puke area.