Zespri chief executive Lain Jager says everything is on track for growers to be getting healthy returns and prices for green kiwifruit are up. Growers of green kiwifruit are earning over $40,000 per hectare, the best return in 10 years.
The price for gold kiwifruit is also very strong at $12.60 per tray, but it is on reduced volumes because of the vine-killing disease PSA. Mr Jager has added that the 2014 crop, which will shortly start being harvested, is looking good and gold kiwifruit numbers are beginning to recover. Last year 2 million trays of the new variety of gold kiwifruit were harvested and this year it will be about 9.5 million trays.