NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • Deloitte Fast 50
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Premium
Home / Business

Voting on Zespri’s offshore growing expansion plan off to a strong start

By Andrea Fox
Herald business writer·NZ Herald·
13 Nov, 2024 04:20 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

SunGold kiwifruit is a global best-seller for export marketer Zespri, which wants to expand offshore growing of the variety.

SunGold kiwifruit is a global best-seller for export marketer Zespri, which wants to expand offshore growing of the variety.

It’s early days, but Zespri’s second bid to persuade the kiwifruit industry to allow more branded fruit to be grown offshore has sparked more voter interest than its first effort.

As at 3pm on Wednesday, three days into the industry producer vote, 17.35% of eligible voters had responded, compared to 6.92% at the same time in the 2022 vote, a Zespri spokesperson said.

The global marketer is asking producers in the $3 billion export industry to support the allocation of up to 420 more hectares of best-seller SunGold kiwifruit a year over six years in Italy, France, Japan, South Korea and Greece.

Voting opened on November 11 and will close on December 5. The result will be known in mid-December.

To pass, the resolution will need support from at least 75% of producers who vote, both by number and weighted production.

Make it your business to know

Start your day with the latest business headlines straight to your inbox.
Please email me competitions, offers and other updates. You can stop these at any time.
By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to NZME’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Grower advocate NZKGI supports the resolution, as does Māori Kiwifruit Growers Inc, whose members represent 10% of New Zealand’s total export crop.

Grower-owned Zespri failed about this time two years ago to get enough producer support to expand plantings of its SunGold overseas, excluding China and Chile by up to 10,000ha.

The vote was close, but fell short of success because some growers who did not own shares did not believe more offshore planting would benefit them. Under 50% of Zespri’s growers own shares, a level the company is working to lift.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Zespri, which industry sources said had done a “hard sell” in its attempt to get offshore expansion over the line this time, has the statutory right to export all New Zealand kiwifruit, except to Australia.

The company has run offshore production for nearly 25 years to complement New Zealand supply. It has 1500 contracted offshore producers.

The aim of the expansion is to support the marketer’s strategy of being able to offer the world Zespri-branded fruit 12 months of the year. In New Zealand, kiwifruit is a seasonal crop. The approved offshore maximum of 5000ha has been allocated.

Zespri chief executive Jason Te Brake said expanding overseas plantings was important to deliver value to growers and the proposal reflected the positive outlook for kiwifruit and an increasingly competitive fruit category.

Zespri is supplied by around 2800 New Zealand growers and, working alongside the multimillion-dollar post-harvest sector, is New Zealand’s biggest exporter in the horticulture sector.

Observers say Zespri’s credibility with the industry is on the line with the second vote.

Discover more

  • New Zespri CEO’s flying start
  • SunGold export outlook juicy but yellow kiwifruit competition ...
  • Zespri's grim warning over rogue Chinese production ...
  • Zespri pushes hard to sell second plan for offshore ...

It has lost two producer votes in recent years; a third would not be a good look for its leadership of the integrated industry, they say.

Andrea Fox joined the Herald as a senior business journalist in 2018 and specialises in writing about the $26b dairy industry, agribusiness, exporting and the logistics sector and supply chains.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save
    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Business

Premium
Business

'Just the start': AI innovation aims to boost GP efficiency

Premium
OpinionLiam Dann

Liam Dann: Rise in KiwiSaver withdrawals for hardship reasons a worrying trend

Premium
OpinionHeather du Plessis-Allan

Heather du Plessis-Allan: We are being irrational about the price of butter


Sponsored

Sponsored: More cash, less stress - a lending strategy for investors

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Recommended for you

Helicopters fight 12 suspicious fires, including 50ha vegetation blaze
New Zealand

Helicopters fight 12 suspicious fires, including 50ha vegetation blaze

Thailand, Cambodia seek truce after deadly border conflict
World

Thailand, Cambodia seek truce after deadly border conflict

Trump plays golf in Scotland amid protests and tight security
World

Trump plays golf in Scotland amid protests and tight security

The Kiwi troops training Ukraine soldiers
World

The Kiwi troops training Ukraine soldiers

'A lot of deception': French bakery owners vanished, leaving debts unpaid
New Zealand

'A lot of deception': French bakery owners vanished, leaving debts unpaid

Three spectators killed in motor rally accident in France
World

Three spectators killed in motor rally accident in France



Latest from Business

Premium
Premium
'Just the start': AI innovation aims to boost GP efficiency
Business

'Just the start': AI innovation aims to boost GP efficiency

Health Accelerator aims to help doctors adopt new AI technologies.

27 Jul 12:01 AM
Premium
Premium
Liam Dann: Rise in KiwiSaver withdrawals for hardship reasons a worrying trend
Liam Dann
OpinionLiam Dann

Liam Dann: Rise in KiwiSaver withdrawals for hardship reasons a worrying trend

26 Jul 05:00 PM
Premium
Premium
Heather du Plessis-Allan: We are being irrational about the price of butter
Heather du Plessis-Allan
OpinionHeather du Plessis-Allan

Heather du Plessis-Allan: We are being irrational about the price of butter

26 Jul 05:00 PM


Sponsored: More cash, less stress - a lending strategy for investors
Sponsored

Sponsored: More cash, less stress - a lending strategy for investors

22 Jul 07:56 AM

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
All Access. All in one subscription. From $2 per week
Subscribe now

All Access Weekly

From $2 per week
Pay just
$15.75
$2
per week ongoing
Subscribe now
BEST VALUE

All Access Annual

Pay just
$449
$49
per year ongoing
Subscribe now
Learn more
30
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search