Colin Bond: Kiwifruit Growers CEO on exports being valued at $3.1 billion

Kiwifruit exports are winning gold this year. 

Exports were valued at $3.1 billion in the year to August - the highest value point ever. 

It's a 20% increase from 2023, and $524 million jump. 

Kiwifruit Growers CEO Colin Bond told Mike Hosking the top destination for green kiwifruit is Europe, while China's the top market for gold. 

He says Europeans have always recognised the health benefits of green, and China has no shortage of green fruit, so are more keen on new varieties. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Very good news for New Zealand Inc. As our quiw
fruit grows continue to do the heavy lifting. Export values
are at their highest point ever. This is in the
year to August three point one billion dollars, which is
a twenty percent increase on last year and dollar terms
that's five hundred and twenty four million. Will Bank that
all day long. Chief Executive of New Zealand Kuipi Fruit
Grows Ink Colin bonders with us. Colin, very good morning
to you. What do you like Does it feel like

(00:22):
you're doing well if you wander around the fields and
the paddocks.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Yeah, it absolutely does. Those numbers to August, take the
last end of the twenty twenty three harvest and the
start of twenty four and twenty four. It has been
stelling year. I'm up in grease actual Europe at the
moment and feedback up here is really positive about our product.
So I think this is a start of more good times.

Speaker 1 (00:43):
A yet ye up in Greece at a conference. Are
you working hard? Colin?

Speaker 2 (00:49):
Conference? Having yes, catch you with grows some other other
regions around the world, and also having a look at
the Kiwi fruit in the supply chain. We are what
week thirty eight now in the season, and the fruit's
holding up extremely well.

Speaker 1 (01:00):
MA, What is the situation with these international growths you've got?
Is this the way of the future. Is everybody in
the industry broadly happy with the arrangement we have.

Speaker 2 (01:11):
I think when the industry was put the single test
structure in place nearly thirty years ago, it was with
the intention of having twelve months supply. We're doing a
fantastic job of producing that fruit out of New Zealand.
But I was speak to consumers all of the time
up here, and they enjoy their kiwi every day of
the year. So we want to make sure that kiwi
is esperate keywi fruit. So we have some work to

(01:33):
do to make sure we've got twelve months supply. But
there's a lot of team growers here in the Northern
Hemisphere who want to be part of the family.

Speaker 1 (01:40):
How is it? And I didn't realize this and this
is my ignorance. Gold is good in China, greens more
in Europe. Why the split? What's happened there?

Speaker 2 (01:49):
Well? Green Europeans recognize the health benefits of green and
always have. In China, they've got no shortage of green
fruit themselves, so they're more keen on than new variety
entering the market and understand the vitamin see benefits of gold.
So good to have, good to have a foot in
both camps.

Speaker 1 (02:07):
I reckon. And where's red at and how good could
it be?

Speaker 2 (02:11):
Red from a consumer perspective is excellent. The challenge is
how long it stays in the supply chain. So we're
producing close to a million trays in New Zealand now
for the Southeast Asia markets. And again I've had no
shortage of conversations in the last week with European consumers
who'd love to find a way to get their hands
on some ruby red. It's just a matter of how
we can get that producing in the Northern hemisphere closer

(02:34):
to the market.

Speaker 1 (02:34):
Right And what about the trade deals, the deal we've
done with Europe, the deal we've done with the UK,
all that sort of stuff. Do you feel the difference
of those sort of deals or not?

Speaker 2 (02:43):
Absolutely? And I say where I mean growers. Those sort
of deals growers put money back and growers pockets so
at a time when their cost of production on orchard
is increasing, every little bit counts. So absolutely we're all
for trade deals.

Speaker 1 (02:57):
Fantastic. Well good okay. And I always like to remember
whenever I talked kb Fit, you remember Meham, you remember PSA,
and you remember the misery and the woe and the
concern and all of that, and you look at you guys.
Now it's one of the great stories, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (03:11):
Well it really is, you know, and you're only going
back a decade. But other than a couple of bumps
along the road, we are now on really long entrend.
We hope can douse horticulture. We get reminded from time
to time that it's not all going to be playing sailing,
but we've just got to keep focusing on the future
because it's very bright. People want our products. It's a
great product with a great brand. New Zealand Pink should

(03:32):
be proud of what we're doing and we should all be,
I think supporting the journey.

Speaker 1 (03:35):
Very well said go well, Colin, appreciate it. Colum Bond,
who's the New Zealand Kueby for it, grow as a CEO,
who's with us from Greece this morning.

Speaker 2 (03:41):
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