Hawkes Bay growers in a stew

A shortage of fruit pickers during the royal gala apple harvest has left Hawkes Bay growers nervous about the rest of the season.

Hawkes Bay Fruitgrowers' Association executive officer Dianne Vesty said the industry never knew for sure whether enough people would be available at the right time.

"It's like walking a knife's edge," she said.

Staff shortages during the recent royal gala harvest forced growers to not pick some crops damaged by hail earlier in the season.

These crops required more skilled pickers to thin off the damaged outer fruit to let sunlight reach good fruit.

Although concerns about the staff shortage were high last week, Vesty suspects that in the end a relatively small amount of fruit was left unpicked.

"Even so it's just an indicator that we're just a little bit below the levels of staffing that we do need."

Filling picking and packing vacancies at orchards had kept Vesty busy.

"Picknz.co.nz is working well and we have also set up a phone messaging system, which is updated every hour," she said.

More than 6000 job seekers, 672 employers and 78 accommodation providers have registered on the picknz website, created to help match supply with demand, but it was not enough.

The high exchange rate and the cost of visiting New Zealand was turning away people who traditionally helped with the harvest, Vesty said.

Growers have only a 14-day window to pick fruit and as the royal gala harvest winds down the focus is shifting to braeburn, due to get underway in about two weeks.

Those apples not picked could be harvested later for juice but only if it proved economical to do so, Vesty said.

The staff shortages this year have been heightened by the season's running a week ahead of normal and with more concentrated harvesting peaks.

Horticulture New Zealand director Ru Collin, said the seasonal peak times were like ticking time bombs because when the fruit was ready, it had to be picked.

"The pressure is now on," Collin said. "The second peak of the season for braeburn apples in Hawkes Bay will fall before Easter and we need to keep workers here and interested in working, before following the harvest trail to Bay of Plenty," he said.

Every year ensuring the right amount of labour is on the ground when the fruit needs to come off is a challenge. Historically, each region has advertised separately to attract seasonal staff, Vesty said.

"I think the key is everybody working together just to get the right people here at the right time."

The long-term aim of the picknz website is to build a harvest trail of seasonal work, which people can travel for up to eight months a year.

The Department of Labour is also trying to help avoid a labour shortage by issuing 4000 seasonal work permits as part of a pilot policy. Last year the department issued 800 permits for Hawkes Bay.