WELLINGTON: New Zealand apple growers have enjoyed another strong season and the industry looks set to hit the goal of $1 billion in export receipts earlier than the 10-year target of 2022.
In the season just finished, the harvest is forecast to reach 551,000 tonnes, eclipsing the previous record, set in 2013, of about 550,000 tonnes.
Pipfruit New Zealand chief executive Alan Pollard said concerns about hailstorms late last year and early this year proved to be ill-founded. Volumes were once again strong and quality was up.
“We are well on track for this $1 billion target that we have set ourselves and we will certainly achieve that earlier than anticipated,” he said.
“We have had three good seasons in a row and we see ourselves as having a very sustainable growth path now.”
New plantings, in terms of area planted, were growing at 5 per cent a year, Pollard said. “There is a large amount of investment going in.
“Something like 40 per cent of our trees are less than 10 years old, so a lot of the growth will come from the substantial amount of new plantings.”
Export receipts from the apple trade came to $536 million in 2014, up 65 per cent from the $324 million recorded in 2010. Returns per carton are up 30 per cent in the same period.
The apple harvest starts in January and goes through to early May.
About 65 per cent of the harvest comes from Hawkes Bay, 27 per cent from Nelson and about 4 per cent from Central Otago.
New Zealand’s apples continue to command a premium over its main competitors – Chile, the United States and South Africa.
A Russian ban on the import of apples from some Western nations had caused some uncertainty in the market but Pollard said market conditions were otherwise buoyant.
New Zealand’s biggest variety, royal gala, represents about one-third of apple exports. Braeburn remains a significant variety. High-colour varieties of royal gala are sold in Asia, with newer varieties of New Zealand queen, rose and beauty.
“There are some varieties replacing others as we become more focused on Asia as a primary market for exports,” Pollard said.
The biggest individual customers are the United States and Britain, which take 40,000 tonnes apiece.
Thailand and Taiwan are also big customers. By region, Asia is the biggest destination, taking about 40 per cent of exports.
Strength in New Zealand’s horticulture sector is partly offsetting weakness in the biggest primary industry – dairy.
Kiwifruit is rebounding strongly after setbacks brought on by the outbreak of the PSA virus, and the wine-growing sector is also doing well, according to the Ministry for Primary Industries’ latest report.
“The horticulture grouping of sectors have maintained upward momentum, driven by high volumes of wine and kiwifruit,” it said.
Kiwifruit and wine export volumes are the stand-out performers for horticulture in the year ending this month, driving export revenue growth of 4.8 per cent to $4 billion.
