Northlanders struggle to find apples due to ‘lull’ in the domestic market as season ends

While Hawke's Bay apple orchards copped significant damage from Cyclone Gabrielle, the lack of apples is to do with the end of the season.

Northlanders struggling to find apples in supermarkets, local shops and markets can be reassured there isn’t an apple shortage, even though there is definitely “a bit of a lull”.

Residents and local shops have reported a distinct lack of apples over the past month and Rose, Royal Gala, Granny Smiths and Simply Reds are out of stock at some New World and Countdown supermarkets online.

A Paihia Four Square employee said they were out of stock all last week, but on Friday they managed to secure one box.

The box of Eve apples was selling at $6.99 a kg, but “I imagine it won’t last long”, the staff member said.

“We can’t get them,” she said.

“Today we got one box, the first box we’ve had all week.

“We were told they didn’t produce enough apples in one season to carry through from the storms.

“Some people get annoyed; some people can be quite understanding, they say we’ve seen it everywhere, no one’s got any apples.”

Northland grower Joe Thistlethwaite, who has a stall at the Old Packhouse Market in Kerikeri, said he’s had “heaps of problems” getting his apples, which are sourced from Hawke’s Bay.

Thistlethwaite said Cyclone Gabrielle and other storms from last summer might have played a part in the shortage.

“While the end of the season has a part to play ... with storms and the cyclone coming to effect now, we’re starting to see it.

“It’s similar to kūmara, there’s not much around.

“Normally, we would have apples all the way through, but with the cyclone, we’ve not had that.”

Northland grower Joe Thistlethwaite, who has a market stall in Kerikeri, said he’s had problems getting his apples, which are sourced from Hawke's Bay.

Thistlethwaite said most apple varieties were picked in March and apples would soon be available again.

“We’re at the end of the season now. Give it six to eight weeks and we’ll have more fresh apples.”

Data collated by New Zealand Apples and Pears from the Hawke’s Bay region’s 150 apple growers showed nearly half the crop was affected by Cyclone Gabrielle in one way or another.

Some were destroyed, others were submerged and had deep silt through them resulting in significant tree deaths.

In some orchards, trees were waterlogged but some of the fruit was salvageable.

However, Hawke’s Bay Fruit Growers Association president Brydon Nisbet said the lack of apples had more to do with the end of the season.

There was no shortage, he said, more “a bit of a lull”.

Most New Zealand apples from Hawke’s Bay are exported, with only about 5 per cent for the domestic market, Nisbet said.

While it might be hard to find apples at present, there will be early varieties on the market from February.

“Even though we got hit hard [by the cyclone] and lost produce, there’s always enough for domestic supply.

“It’s always this time of year they start running out until the next ones come in.”

Nisbet said by February, the early varieties, Pacific Beauty and Royal Gala, would come onto the market.

“It might be getting to the very end, but come mid-February they’ll be replenished.”

Neither Woolworths, formerly Countdown, nor Foodstuffs, which owns New World and Pak‘nSave, commented directly on whether the lack of apples was caused by knock-on effects of the cyclone.

A Woolworths spokeswoman said: “Stock is influenced by the apple harvest season ending nationwide.”

A Foodstuffs spokeswoman said: “New-season Royal Gala apples start in a couple of weeks out of Gisborne.”

Jenny Ling is a news reporter and features writer for the Northern Advocate. She has a special interest in covering health, roading, lifestyle, business and animal welfare issues.