In a New Zealand kiwifruit industry first, 160 refrigerated containers, containing 832,000 trays of ZESPRI® Kiwifruit, have been loaded and delivered to the Port of Tauranga for export in a 12-hour period.
This new shipping record for the industry meant that over the 12-hour period on Saturday, 4 June a container was loaded with kiwifruit every four-and-a-half minutes.
Tauranga Kiwifruit Logistics General Manager Ian Mearns said the record number of containers loaded was a testament to the dedication of truck drivers, data entry operators, coolstore staff, transport coordinators and the checkpoint personnel at the Port of Tauranga.
Mr Mearns, who oversees the logistics operation for the New Zealand kiwifruit industry at the Port of Tauranga, said while the loading of 160 containers in one day was a record, he wanted it to become a standard for the industry.
“As the industry continues to grow and evolve we must constantly be looking at ways to increase our productivity. The length of the season doesn’t really change so as productivity improves we just have to handle more kiwifruit.
“To do this we employ technology and communication tools to work smarter. We look forward to the challenge of 160 containers a day being a regular occurrence,” Mr Mearns said.
ZESPRI’s GM Supply Chain Sally Gardiner said the strength of the New Zealand kiwifruit industry is its unity, and this kind of achievement underlines how the industry works together to meet the needs of our international markets.
Ms Gardiner said the 2011 kiwifruit season was on track as planned, despite wet weather disrupting picking operations.
“The industry made the most of the fine days and really worked hard to get the fruit picked when the weather allowed it. This means we have now almost finished picking ZESPRI® GOLD Kiwifruit and are 85 percent through the harvest of ZESPRI® GREEN kiwifruit,” Ms Gardiner said.
During the 2011 season ZESPRI will fill 63 chartered vessels as well as a further 7000 containers with over 100 million trays of New Zealand kiwifruit to be shipped to 55 countries around the world.
ENDS
For more information or to coordinate an interview, please contact:
David Courtney
Senior Communications Advisor
Phone: 07 572 7771 (office) or 027 234 5665 (mobile)
Email:
david.courtney@zespri.com
About ZESPRI Group Ltd
With sales revenues of $1.5 billion, ZESPRI is the world’s most successful horticulture marketing company and the ZESPRI® Brand is recognised as the world leader in premium quality kiwifruit. Based in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand, we are 100 percent owned by current or past kiwifruit growers, and employ approximately 250 people in New Zealand, Asia, Europe and North America. On behalf of our 2,700 growers in New Zealand and 1,200 growers based elsewhere, ZESPRI manages kiwifruit innovation and supply management, distribution management and marketing of ZESPRI® GREEN, ZESPRI® GOLD and ZESPRI® ORGANIC Kiwifruit.
History of the New Zealand Kiwifruit Industry Structure
During the 1980s, the New Zealand kiwifruit industry was fragmented, with seven exporters out-bidding each other onshore and undercutting and price bargaining in the real marketplace. The industry faced significant increases in volumes, alongside a high New Zealand dollar and high interest rates. There was no collective way to deal with these challenges – it was an individual fight for survival.
On the 16th of June 1988 growers voted to establish the New Zealand Kiwifruit Marketing Board as a single desk exporter under grower control – a landmark decision which saw the industry starting to operate within a truly cohesive framework. The development of a single brand and greater coordination of supply chain, innovation and marketing activities, formed the foundation of what is now a $1.5 billion dollar industry and undoubtedly the world’s most successful horticulture marketing company.