The stars are aligning for the Bay of Plenty kiwifruit industry.

“If we execute well, there is a solid, reliable, decade ahead,” said Andrew Dunstan, director of the Tauranga-based orchard development business Southern Cross Horticulture.

“There is a growing demand for kiwifruit at good prices, and we need to fulfil that demand,” he said.

While 2022 and 2023 were tough years, Dunstan said the industry picked up in 2024, and 2025 looked promising.

This means demand for properties in the area covered by the business, from Auckland to Whakatāne, is starting to pick up.

Dunstan said that in each of the peak years of 2021 and 2022, an average of 100ha of new orchards was developed by Southern Cross Horticulture.

This dropped to 50ha in 2023 and 2024, but 80-100ha is predicted this year.

Dunstan said the kiwifruit industry needed to grow at a pace where it could sustain excellence.

“It’s not about people just throwing money at it. It’s about being the best, not the biggest.”

He says food is increasingly being seen as medicine, with kiwifruit one of the most nutritious fruits on the planet.

The business and a group of investment partners bought a 45ha dairy farm at Pukehina in 2020, which is ready for its first pick.

Andrew Wilks, regional manager with Southern Cross Horticulture, said 16ha had been planted, and the first crop would produce about 9000 trays.

As the balance of property was converted to kiwifruit, and this year’s vines mature, he said next season’s yield was more likely to reach 17,500 trays.

Wonderful weather

There is a growing demand for kiwifruit. Photo / David Hall

Wilks said spring was “almost textbook” for pollination, while summer weather conditions had been “very forgiving”.

The business is also developing a 40ha dairy farm into a kiwifruit orchard at Paengaroa, near Te Puke, for a group of growers.

Building of infrastructure will begin in April, while the first planting window will be June/July, Wilks said.

New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers Inc reported that the first fruit of the new season was picked just outside Edgecumbe in mid-February, marking the earliest ever harvest.

Chief executive Colin Bond said most of New Zealand’s growers were experiencing ideal growing conditions to produce plenty of high-quality fruit.

Current analysis forecasts an “industry milestone” could be reached this year, with a record crop of just over 200 million trays of kiwifruit to be harvested over the coming months.

Bond said this would be a “modest increase” from last year’s record-breaking season of more than 190 million trays.

“While my thoughts are with those Tasman and Whakatāne growers who received significant hail damage at the end of December, overall, growers have experienced a great lead up to the harvest with ideal sun and little wind to produce excellent kiwifruit,” Bond said.

“Over the last few years our industry has been working collaboratively to ensure our supply chain is robust to export increased volumes and deliver our high quality fruit to consumers around the world.”

National importance

Growth on a kiwifruit vine. Photo / David Hall

Bond said the success of New Zealand’s kiwifruit harvest was not only important for the industry, but the wider regions in which it was grown.

In the 2023/24 season, kiwifruit growers contributed some $2.2 billion to the national economy, with $1.8b coming into the Bay of Plenty.

New Zealand’s kiwifruit industry is horticulture’s largest export, with more than 2800 growers located from Kerikeri to Motueka.

Zespri has released its final forecast for the 2024/25 season, predicting that strong demand and the largest-ever crop will put the kiwifruit marketer on track to exceed its longstanding target of $4.5b in global revenue.

Chief executive Jason Te Brake said forecast per tray returns had strengthened from the last forecast in November for all fruit categories other than green, which remained in line with November’s forecast.

Growing conditions had been “largely positive”, which he said, when combined with strong demand, had allowed Zespri to sell a record crop of more than 190 million trays at strong value for growers.

“It’s been a very positive season,” Te Brake said.

“With our crop volume significantly up on the previous year, the industry’s efforts to deliver good quality fruit have supported strong sales in our key markets.

“The strong value we’ve secured on a big crop means we will exceed the target set in 2015 of reaching $4.5b in global revenue by 2025.

“This is a tremendous effort from the industry and reflects our commitment to building brand-led demand, delivering outstanding quality kiwifruit to our markets and innovating to create value for growers.

“There’s a strong sense of confidence within the industry, and it’s great to see growers positive and the industry moving forward so strongly.

“With a positive outlook and strong demand for our fruit, we’re looking forward to the 2025 harvest, as we look to build on the strong momentum the industry has.”