Jen Scouler: Stolen avocados a growing issue

The Fresh Market Gate Pa manager David Stewart, NZ Avocado chief executive Jen Scoular and Sergeant Trevor Brown.

We're having an exciting start to the New Zealand avocado season with a very well attended media launch in Auckland and lots of media attention - both good and bad.
More recently, we have received renewed interest in media from New Zealand and Australia about a different and challenging topic - fruit theft.

NZ Avocado has been working with NZ Police in recent seasons to increase awareness of the issue of avocado theft in communities where avocados are grown, and with fruit and vegetable shop owners that we know are often targeted by traders of stolen avocados.

Police have shown great support for the avocado industry having received nine reported thefts in Western Bay of Plenty between May and July. They have been proactively visiting fruit and vegetable stores across Bay of Plenty, Waikato and South Auckland to educate shop owners on the consequences of avocado theft.

We strongly support the police message that business owners receiving and selling stolen avocados need to give thought to the avocado business owner whose livelihood they are destroying. If a shop owner knowingly purchases stolen avocados, they could be charged with receiving stolen property, which carries a maximum imprisonment of seven years.

Offenders stealing avocados can be charged with burglary and face a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment.

In July, NZ Avocado worked with the NZ Police media team to develop a news release targeted at educating fruit shop owners.

Following the resulting media enquiry from nationwide news services, NZ Avocado facilitated the filming of a Newshub television news segment involving Sergeant Trevor Brown of Western Bay Police, Tauranga green grocer David Stewart and avocado growers Robin Hanvey and Maxine Graham. The segment was shown on nationwide television news.

Just last week we have had enquiries from Newstalk ZB, Fairfax Media, The Guardian UK, The AM Show, ABC Radio Melbourne, ABC Radio Perth, Radio NZ, and by the time you read this we would have wrapped up filming with Seven Sharp.

Not only do the growers suffer. Avocados stolen from properties are often too immature to ever ripen properly. The consumer gets a poor eating experience. They may have been sprayed recently.

The consumer gets a potentially dangerous eating experience. The problem exists not only for affected growers but also avocado-loving New Zealanders who buy stolen fruit. As a consumer, always ask where your avocados come from.

Our avocados have a good supply chain and the seller of avocados should be able to tell you where the avocados came from.

Pro-active education of store owners and the public will make it more difficult for traders of stolen avocados to sell stolen fruit.

The message from NZ Police to store owners is "Support orchardists, your fellow business owners, and don't purchase these stolen avocados. If we work together, we can combat this issue."