Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

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.
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Alan Pollard, Apples and Pears CEO, ready to stand down with $1 billion goal in sight

Doug Laing
By Doug Laing
Multimedia Journalist·Hawkes Bay Today·
8 Jun, 2021 01:01 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

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

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.

Industry asks why essential workers from Covid-free nations face quarantine. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

The man at the centre of the near-trebling of New Zealand apple and pear exports in less than a decade, and a dream to double that again over the next few years, is stepping down from the job at the end of this year.

New Zealand Apple and Pears chief executive Alan Pollard took up the job in Hastings in March 2013, when the industry was realising export earnings of about $340 million a year.

The following year it set a goal of increasing that to $1 billion by 2022, and having hit $920 million last year he's confident that target will have been reached, but for the wide-ranging impacts of the Covid-19 global pandemic, including labour shortages that have left a lot of fruit unable to be picked for the market.

"Obviously, we're not going to see that this year," he told Hawke's Bay Today, referring to last year's achievement.

Alan Pollard, in one of his last photo-ops among the trees, plans to stand down as Apples and Pears NZ chief executive this year. Photo / NZME
Alan Pollard, in one of his last photo-ops among the trees, plans to stand down as Apples and Pears NZ chief executive this year. Photo / NZME
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"That's the reality, but it's certainly achievable. We've transformed the industry, all the building blocks are in place, and we've now got a target for $2 billion a year by 2030."

He said there is still a lot of under-utilised land in the wider East Coast region that could be prominent in achieving the goal, and the revolution has included development of new varieties with significantly higher yields per hectare.

Pollard hasn't mapped out his own future yet, saying the first goal is to help the transition to a new chief executive before starting to look for his own future opportunities.

Announcing Pollard's departure later this year, NZAPI chairman Richard Punter said the search for a successor will start "shortly".

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"As NZAPI defines what business as usual might look like post-Covid, Alan feels that this is the right time for a new leader to bring their own skills, experience and style to the organisation," Punter said.

"We are deeply appreciative of the contribution that Alan has made to the successful growth of the industry and the grower organisation," he said.

Pollard said: "I am immensely proud of the work that the NZAPI team has done, especially over the past 15 months to support the industry in unprecedented times. NZAPI is acknowledged as a high-performing and influential industry organisation, and I have enjoyed every bit of what has been (collectively) achieved."

"During a transition period I will be ensuring a smooth handover to my successor as well as continuing to progress some key projects, including pursuing an agreement with government regarding the bringing in and repatriation of RSE workers," he said. "Beyond that, I look forward to identifying and pursuing my next opportunity."

Save

    Share this article

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

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Hawkes Bay Today

'Bloody beating': Pair found guilty of Javon Aranui's manslaughter

29 May 04:27 AM
Hawkes Bay Today

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council rates will rise by 9.9%

29 May 03:50 AM
Hawkes Bay Today

Winds could hit gale force in Hawke's Bay on Saturday

29 May 03:28 AM

Gold demand soars amid global turmoil

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

'Bloody beating': Pair found guilty of Javon Aranui's manslaughter

'Bloody beating': Pair found guilty of Javon Aranui's manslaughter

29 May 04:27 AM

The jury deliberated for almost three days in case where the victim had 16 head injuries.

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council rates will rise by 9.9%

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council rates will rise by 9.9%

29 May 03:50 AM
Winds could hit gale force in Hawke's Bay on Saturday

Winds could hit gale force in Hawke's Bay on Saturday

29 May 03:28 AM
Manawatū-Tararua highway to be formally opened on June 7 – traffic set to roll in following week

Manawatū-Tararua highway to be formally opened on June 7 – traffic set to roll in following week

29 May 01:59 AM
Explore the hidden gems of NSW
sponsored

Explore the hidden gems of NSW

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
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP