Presidents Report

I hope this month’s report finds everyone in good spirits and that the recent hail events haven’t caused to much damage for our growers. Other than that, we have once again experienced excellent spring growth leading into the start of summer. As I get out and about talking to different growers, there is a positive and confident vibe that we are heading for another very good harvest of apples with clean, large fruit on the horizon. The Stone fruit season is currently in full swing with high volumes of fruit moving into the domestic market. Kiwi fruit is shaping up to be an excellent season having high bee activity during the spring which we know is vital for fruit size and quality. They have had very good canopy growth due to the excellent growing conditions.

A couple of weeks ago I was in Wellington and attended the 20-year celebration of Horticulture NZ. They were formed in 2005, when the NZ Fruit Growers Federation (est 1916), NZ Vegetable & Potato Growers Federation (known as Vegfed est 1957) and the Berry Fruit Federation (est 1978) merged to become HORTNZ. Andrew Fenton was the inaugural President and Chaired the role until 2013.    I started on the board in 2020 as the “future director” and was then voted on the following year in August 2021 as an elected grower. Barry O’Neil was the Chair of HORTNZ at this time. (Barry recently stepped down after finishing his 9-year term on the board and is currently the newly appointed chair of the “Environmental Protection Authority” (EPA).  Bernadine Guilleux is the current chair of HORTNZ, and I serve as deputy chair.  We have a diverse board of directors coming from different growing areas in NZ. They are involved in a range of horticulture crops. But I can honestly say when we meet for board meetings, all the directors are focused on the growth, prosperity and concerns of all growers in every area of horticulture throughout NZ. The board also has 2 appointed directors who have various skills, experience and expertise adding real value to HORTNZ.

Here’s a little about what the team at HORTNZ do with your growers’ levy.

HORTNZ is the primary governing body representing about 4500 fruit and vegetable growers in NZ.

Some of the Core functions and activities are:

• “Advocacy and Leadership”. They are the national voice on behalf of growers working with central and local government to influence policy and regulatory decisions, advocating for workable environmental policies, RMA reforms & Biosecurity.

• Environment and Sustainability – HORTNZ helps growers adapt to environmental regulations and promotes sustainable practices. Key areas of focus are water quality, soil health and climate change.

• Biosecurity – HORTNZ is a signatory to the Government Industry Agreement (GIA) allowing partnership with govt on biosecurity readiness and response to protect industry from pest and diseases.

• Labour, Careers & Events – HORTNZ takes the lead on RSE, working with multiple government departments to ensure the long-term viability of the scheme.  They provide regional representatives and regional extension offices to help bridge the gap between growers and HORTNZ (Wellington) – (This will roll out to all areas in 2026) They support the development of young people by leading the Young Grower & Young National Grower competitions and the annual “Horticulture NZ Leadership course” They also host the RSE and Horticulture conference  (28^th-29^th July, 2026 – Wellington)

This is just a glimpse at what HORTNZ do for growers – They take the lead and support the product groups such as NZAPI and associations like HBFA in many of these areas.     Much of the work HORTNZ do is unseen, but you can be sure the team at HORTNZ and passionate and committed in what they do for you and work tirelessly on your behalf everyday.  Here is a one-page link to the “Aotearoa Horticulture Action Plan” (AHAP) – If you go to the HORTNZ website they have the entire plan there for you to read.

https://www.hortnz.co.nz/assets/About-Us/Aotearoa-Horticulture-Action-Plan/A4-one-page-summary.pdf

On February 4^th we will be holding out annual “Industry Awards” evening in conjunction with EIT, to be held at Toi Toi. This is a great event celebrating our horticulture students who have completed their studies with certificate presentations and scholarships awarded. We also have our “Emerging Achiever” award and “Innovation” award presented on the night. All members are welcome.

On a final note – I want to thank all our members, sponsors and especially our HBFA executive team who give much of their time to serve our great industry.

Have a very Merry Christmas, take care of yourselves, enjoy your celebrations with family and friends, and remember our best years are always ahead.

Kia Kaha

Brydon Nisbet

President

• Entries & nominations close: 28 February 2026
• Awards Dinner: Thursday 2 April 2026

• Silver Fern Farms Farmer of the Year
• Rural Directions Shepherd of the Year
• Bayleys Primary Sector Innovation
• Unison Professional of the Year
• Pan Pac Farm Forester of the Year
• Gifford Devine Scholarship
• Laurie Dowling Memorial
• Horticentre Horticulturalist of the Year
• Heretaunga Hastings District Council Industry Leader
• Craigs Investment Partners Emerging Leader

HAG (Horticultural Advisory Group)

Fruit growers and other irrigators have reason for optimism following the government’s recent announcements regarding RMA reforms. An extension of all existing consents to late 2027 provides immediate relief for those with expiring consents whilst new policy guiding future resource consents is worked through. The government has promised that the intent of policy reforms is to address constraints that currently constrain growth in the primary sector and provide confidence for investors. Let’s hope we see this come to fruition.
At the local level, multiple work streams continue with steady progress made in recent weeks. The latest HSW members update is very informative, and I encourage all growers to become a member if you are not already. There is no cost to join, and all growers will benefit from the work this group of volunteers is doing to promote sustainable water supply for all water users. HBFA is represented on the HSW operating committee along with representatives from other sector and product groups. The scope of HSW work spans water storage, aquifer recharge studies, globalised consenting and plan change 9 policy submissions. Each of these work streams are critical in the shaping of a governance model that will provide improved water security for the whole community. I won’t dive into any detail here but please refer to technical updates provided by Charlotte Drury on behalf of HortNZ, along with the HSW newsletter. HBFA will continue to advocate strongly for its members by actively participating in pan sector groups including HSW.

Richard Pentreath
Chair of HAG

Some good news in the RMA space – in amongst all the changes announced by central government last week, a bill was passed that automatically extends all existing and expired resource consents until 31 December 2027! This is particularly good news for all of you who have expired/expiring water permits affected by the TANK Plan Change.  You water use will still need to comply with the conditions of the expired/expiring consent, but you now have more certainty about the volume of water that you will have for the next 2 years. You don’t need to do anything to qualify for this extension -it happens automatically.  Over the next month or so you will receive some correspondence from the regional council confirming the new expiry date as being 31 December 2027. It is still really important to ensure that all water used is accurately recorded by a water meter and/or telemetry, so please make sure your equipment is operating correctly.

Just a couple of other things to note – if your consent expires next May (31 May 2026) and you hadn’t quite got around to lodging your replacement application, you don’t need to do that now. And, if for some reason you do want to have your water permit (or any other consent application for that matter) processed through the council can still do that – just get in touch with them and ask them to carry on.

Any questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch with Charlotte Drury on 027 3225595, or via email to Charlotte.Drury@hortnz.co.nz. Otherwise, I hope everyone has a merry and safe Christmas!

Any questions,  please do not hesitate to get in touch with Charlotte Drury on 0273225595 or Charlotte.Drury@hortnz.co.nz

Is there a Smarter Way?

No doubt about it, farming is challenging no matter what you are producing.  Each season brings learnings, obstacles, market shifts and without fail, weather.  Growers love the challenge, the outdoors, and ultimately providing a high-quality product, but it is also easy to get lost in the day to day.

We need to adapt and address challenges, deliver stronger consistent returns, and ultimately build legacies for future generations.  How do we get there?

Routinely taking stock and asking is there a smarter way?  A smarter way may be a small change in management of a block, it might be closing the data loop on a particular action, it could be setting up a small trial to test a burning question or to simply assess the benefits of particular strategies or actions.

A smarter way might be bigger questions – What options are available to improve?  Is my enterprise resilient?  Have I developed appropriate succession pathways?

There are a range of programmes and pathways available to assist growers, one of which is ASB’s Every Hectare Matters.  The programme is about supporting farmers to unlock the full potential of land & pairing with a range of expertise to deliver.  The programme covers a range of topics including optimisation of current systems, diversification, infrastructure improvements (water reticulation, irrigation, solar etc), housing or papakāinga, and succession planning.  If you’re thinking about any of these things, have a look at the programme and see if its right for you.

Carl O’Brien

It was a dry spring and it was rounded out by below normal November rainfall, which was only 71% of the month’s average.  The low rainfall was accompanied with impressively hot temperatures, both daytime and overnight temperatures were approximately 3°C above average.  It was scorching for the time of year, which doesn’t help the land retain the moisture it has.

River flows were well below average during November and groundwater conditions across the region were also below normal.  Soil moisture ended the season near or below average and the Heretaunga Plains remained a particularly dry spot.

The hot November temperatures were stoked by sea surface temperatures that were and continue to be much higher than average.  Apart from warming our land temperatures, they also raise the likelihood that storms hitting New Zealand will bring significant amounts of rain.  That relies on the storms reaching us though but so far high-pressure systems have been mostly successful fending them off.

That’s likely to be the pattern through early summer but eventually La Niña conditions are expected to become evident as summer progresses.  Therefore, the region could expect more northeasterly winds and a few more rain-makers visiting the region. Hopefully not Christmas Day!  Overall, summer rainfall is forecast to be near normal and temperatures near or above normal.  The La Niña event is expected to wane towards the end of summer, though its influence may linger a bit longer.

Presidents Report

Just a short note from me as I’m currently sitting in Addis Ababa Airport waiting to fly to Cape Town and then home next week. This year has gone so quickly and what a great spring growing time we are having. Thinning is well underway, and the different crops look good.

Early November saw our annual fishing competition get going. A big thankyou once again to all our faithful sponsors and the new ones that came on board. We cannot hold such events without your support. Thanks to all the anglers who came out for the day and congratulations to all our prise winners.

Our next scheduled event is the HBFA awards evening in conjunction with EIT in early February.

Well, I said it would be short – I need to get moving.

Have a good read of the other articles in the newsletter to find out what’s happening around the sector.

Kia Kaha

Brydon Nisbet

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Don’t delay, get replacement consent applications lodged by 30 November!

Another reminder that if you have a regional council resource consent that expires next year (on 31 May 2026) you need to apply to replace it by the end of this month (30 November 2025). You should have received a letter from the regional council telling you this, but if you are unsure please get in touch, as we can easily check consent expiry dates for you.

 Make sure your water use is being accurately recorded

Another reminder to make sure your water use is being accurately recorded.  Keep an eye on your water meter/telemetry data to make sure it lines up with your water use. If you notice anything unusual (like really low recorded use when you are irrigating normally) check it out and get it fixed asap

Decisions on Napier Proposed District Plan released

The decisions on the Napier Proposed District Plan were recently released. HortNZ submitted on a number of matters relevant to the horticulture sector, and is currently reviewing the decisions to decide whether or not there is a need to appeal anything that just doesn’t work from a horticultural perspective

Any questions,  please do not hesitate to get in touch with Charlotte Drury on 0273225595 or Charlotte.Drury@hortnz.co.nz

New Zealand Apples and Pears CEO Karen Morrish reflects on a very special highlight from 2025, attendance at World Food India and a milestone delegation to India’s Himachal Pradesh region.

Last week was World Apple Day. While not particularly well-timed for us here in Aotearoa, it does offer a fantastic opportunity to reflect on that season that was.

New Zealand’s 2025 harvest delivered exceptional, high-quality fruit, abundant yields and a prosperous export season. It was exactly what our industry needed, at exactly the right time.

It also offered milestone opportunities for the future of New Zealand’s pipfruit industry.

New Zealand Apples and Pears’ inaugural attendance at World Food India in late September and our subsequent industry delegation to the Himachal Pradesh region in northern India, was one such opportunity.

At World Food India, NZAPI joined New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science and other sector groups at the New Zealand Pavillion, where our Partner Country status gave us excellent profile and multiple touch points with the Indian Government.

As New Zealand Inc, we showcased our expertise in food innovation, production, processing and safety, our delicious produce itself and crucially, our manaakitanga (hospitality and generosity) to all who visited. We spoke on panel discussions and enjoyed wide-ranging discussions with interesting folk from the full spectrum of industry.

Our subsequent delegation to Himachal Pradesh followed decades of collaboration between New Zealand and Indian apple and pear growers (our partnership dates back to the World Bank Apple Industry Development Project in 1990s). However, despite our extended history, this visit was distinctly future focused for both nations.

We quickly discovered that despite our differences in scale, our goals were aligned – improve orchard gate returns, increase productivity and yields, and critically, ensure we leave a sustainable industry for generations to come.

This shared vision was reaffirmed time and again throughout our two weeks in India, with cooperation and collaboration identified as cornerstones of our relationship both now and in the future.

Back on New Zealand soil, ideal winter and spring conditions have delivered early indications of a positive harvest in 2026. Of course, it will undoubtedly come with its own twists and turns and lessons to be learned.

However, we now look at these lessons with an additional lens. It’s not just what can New Zealand growers learn as a result? But what can we all learn about the future of fruit production and the challenges we face both here and across the globe?