More than 800 growers, produce companies, regulators, and government officials attended the horticulture and Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) conferences in Wellington this week. The two-day event focused on both the sector's progress and ongoing challenges.
The past year saw export revenue projected at more than US$8.4 billion for the year ending June, alongside the development of water storage projects. However, growers also faced issues such as adverse weather, including recent flooding in the South Island, and unstable energy supplies.
Kate Scott, chief executive of Horticulture New Zealand, said: "If there's one word that sums up the past year in New Zealand horticulture, it's resilience. Resilience in the way growers have recovered from adverse events, resilience in the face of rising costs, regulatory reform, biosecurity threats, and the ongoing and unpredictable issues that arise every day when we're growing food for New Zealand and the world."
A new two-year implementation roadmap was launched as part of the Aotearoa Horticulture Action Plan, first introduced in 2023. The plan outlines 24 priority areas, 56 outcomes, and 76 actions, with a focus on sustainable growth, optimising value, technology adoption, Māori engagement, and workforce development.
Associate Agriculture Minister Nicola Grigg said uptake of the plan relied on growers themselves. "While in government, we certainly do have a role to play in it being successful, I do want to be very clear that it is on you to make it successful." She added that reforms of the Resource Management Act (RMA) aimed to reduce regulatory burdens.
Finance Minister Nicola Willis highlighted growers' concerns about uncertainty during RMA reforms. "We can't actually contemplate a world in which a Government would literally turn around to New Zealanders and say, 'sorry, we're not consenting to the growing of vegetables in New Zealand, because we think it's bad for the environment.' That doesn't make sense."
Other sessions addressed consumer and retail trends. Jim Haworth of Peak Global Holdings noted that online shopping was now the default for many consumers. Consultant Tristan Kitchener described New Zealand as the most price-sensitive market in Western nations, with consumers trading down and seeking promotions. The Commerce Commission's grocery commissioner, Pierre van Heerden, said supermarket margins had grown long-term but had slowed recently, and urged growers to share experiences with buyers.
At the Horticulture New Zealand annual general meeting, revenue for the year to March was reported at more than US$18 million, mainly from grower levies, with a post-tax surplus of US$1.2 million. A deficit is forecast for the next financial year. Growers voted to increase directors' and the president's remuneration by 2.2 per cent, with the president's role now exceeding US$90,000.
Source: SunLive