For ZESPRI, delivering wealth to our growers and shareholders isn’t just about money. It’s also about investing in the future of our industry by fostering the education of our young people and our industry’s future leaders, and enriching the lives of people within the communities where we live, work and play.

ZESPRI’s community investment focuses on activities and organisations that are in tune with the community’s needs, with emphasis on education, health and the environment.

We are involved in a range of community initiatives, which aim to:

Enhance Horticulture Education

We support a number of initiatives that aim to attract more people into the horticulture industry. Part of our goal is to help young people understand the range of rewarding, challenging and innovative career options available.

The ZESPRI Horticulture Scholarship Programme aims to encourage secondary school leavers to pursue a tertiary qualification and career in horticulture. Each year, we offer seven scholarships, valued at $3,000 each, to high calibre secondary school students from the main kiwifruit growing regions who intend to study full-time for a degree or diploma in horticulture-related field at a New Zealand University or Polytechnic. Click here for information about the application process. To apply click on thislink. 

We also work closely with the Horticulture Departments of Katikati and Waihi Colleges, and other activities in schools and preschools. Part of our three-year partnership with Waihi College entails investing in the college’s kiwifruit trial orchard, which gives students the chance to gain research and development skills.

Demonstrate and Encourage Leadership

As the world leader in kiwifruit and New Zealand’s leading horticultural exporter, ZESPRI is well placed to support and encourage others to develop leadership potential.

ZESPRI is one of six leading New Zealand agri-businesses supporting an educational trust to promote world-class performance, knowledge and competitiveness in all aspects of New Zealand agribusiness. The Alistair Betts Memorial Trust for Agribusiness Excellence honours Alistair’s contribution in forging an export path for New Zealand primary produce across the world. He was a long-term ZESPRI Director until his death in 2004.  Click here to read more.

Each year ZESPRI offers the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme to help future kiwifruit industry leaders realise their potential. The programme involves two weeks of full-time study at Lincoln University and 10 months of project work.

Enrich Lives

Although ZESPRI achieves a billion dollars in annual sales, we’re still small in terms of the number of employees and our facilities. But this suits us fine; we’re able to remain close to the members of our communities and help them where we can to achieve health, education and happiness.

The ZESPRI YouthBank encourages good citizenship within our community. Each year, ZESPRI gives $2,000 to 12 Bay of Plenty secondary schools, which is put back into the school’s community for a range of youth-related organisations.
 
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