Sun Gold kiwifruit yields are up on last season in Tairāwhiti with an average of nearly 14,000 trays per hectare over the early season.
Sun Gold kiwifruit yields are up on last season in Tairāwhiti with an average of nearly 14,000 trays per hectare over the early season.
The kiwifruit season in Tairāwhiti is progressing well, but growers who have yet to harvest are watching the weather closely.
About six million trays have been picked as growers with fruit still on the vines eye the passage of Cyclone Vaianu.
NZ Kiwifruit Growers representative Tim Tietjen said the weatherhad been favourable and the organisation was hopeful the effects of Vaianu would be minimal on crops and the roading network to ensure fruit made it to consumers around the world.
“To this point of the season, we’ve had a good supply of labour and the weather has allowed plenty of harvesting days.
More than 60 million trays of Sun Gold kiwifruit have been picked so far nationally, including around six million trays in Tairāwhiti.
“There are only a few green kiwifruit growers left in the district, and they are still in the KiwiStart part of their harvest, waiting for fruit to clear the maturity standards set by Zespri.
“They will be harvesting when the weather and fruit maturity allows.”
Tietjen said the Ruby Red variety was maturing later than usual, which meant it coincided with the early Sun Gold harvest.
However, this was managed well between growers and packhouse teams.
“Ruby Red yields have increased as this new variety’s vines mature, with some of the district’s growers harvesting over 10,000 trays per hectare for the first time.
“Fruit size is also larger than previous seasons, and feedback from the markets has been positive on the fruit quality and taste.
Growers with kiwifruit still to harvest are hoping for minimal damage to hanging crops and the roading network as the region braces for Cyclone Vaianu.
“It will be interesting to see how much of Zespri’s new R80 variety the region’s growers decide to purchase.
“Sun Gold yields are also up on last season, with Tairāwhiti averaging nearly 14,000 trays per hectare over the early season KiwiStart period.
“Over 60 million trays of Sun Gold have been harvested so far this season in New Zealand, with our region contributing around 6 million trays, far exceeding our proportion of the national crop.
“There is currently a pause in Sun Gold harvest as growers wait for the fruit to attain optimum maturity, with harvest likely to resume from mid-April, weather permitting.”
