From the chief executive: Zespri's Dan Mathieson answers key questions about business and our economic future

Zespri chief executive Dan Mathieson. Photo / File

The economic effects of Covid-19 and New Zealand's subsequent nationwide lockdown have been felt far and wide by our business community. Journalist Stephanie Arthur-Worsop asks Zespri chief executive Dan Mathieson to reflect on his own company's survival and what he thinks needs to be done to help the local economy bounce back.

How has the Covid-19 pandemic affected your company?

The impact of Covid-19 has been felt by businesses and communities across the world but we've been incredibly heartened by the response of our industry and the support we've received which allowed us to continue to operate during the lockdown.

Our priority was the health and wellbeing of our people in New Zealand and around the world who have been affected in different ways.

As a food producer, our industry has been focusing on safely delivering what's set to be our biggest crop of Zespri Kiwifruit yet to consumers around the world and we're incredibly proud our industry could get our kiwifruit picked and packed in top quality condition so we could start selling our kiwifruit in what has been a record early start to the season.

What are you doing to ensure the company survives the pandemic and/or thrives after it?

Our global team at Zespri has been working remotely and staying closely connected through online meetings and town halls, and we've remained focused on delivering our season.

It's been great to see teams supporting each other and checking in regularly. The broader industry has continued to innovate, and work collectively to observe additional safety protocols across the picking, packing and shipping of this season's crop.

While it's still early in the season, we've been encouraged by sales to date and the strong demand.

We have been investing in developing our online sales and marketing platforms for many years now and this has helped us take advantage of the rapid shift to online purchasing we have seen in recent months and a trend that we expect only to accelerate from now.

What are the benefits and challenges of running a business in the Bay of Plenty?

We're proud to be based in the Bay of Plenty, where about 80 per cent of New Zealand's kiwifruit is grown.

It's a beautiful area with a great sense of community, and an incredible kiwifruit industry made up of thousands of different businesses which are thriving together and supporting other local businesses.

Zespri is also committed to helping people, communities and the environment thrive through the goodness of kiwifruit. Part of the way we do that is by supporting local organisations like Good Neighbour, Surf Life Saving New Zealand and the Ōtanewainuku Kiwi Trust which are doing really positive work in our communities.

We need to keep letting people know how great the area is to live and work so we can continue to attract top talent to Zespri and other businesses in the Bay.

What do you believe should happen in order to revitalise and rebuild the local/regional economy?

Through a number of ups and downs, our region has grown together and that will be the case as our region continues to respond to Covid-19.

The Bay is now home to an increasingly large and diverse range of organisations and businesses that take great pride in their products and ambitions to grow, and the contribution each makes to the local economy.

It's important that we all continue to work together to produce high-quality goods and services that are in demand in New Zealand and around the world, as well as supporting our local communities.

Our focus at Zespri will be taking our amazing fruit to the world, looking after our people and their wellbeing, and creating jobs and opportunities in order to help our local people and communities do better as our industry continues to grow and prosper.

So far New Zealand has been able to come out of Covid-19 really well compared with other countries. This has been well recognised by people everywhere and I believe that New Zealand's great food and other products that come from the regions will be in even stronger demand in the future.