A clear understanding of different market tastes and a strong start to the New Zealand apple season is helping Turners & Growers (T&G) build up demand and growth across the board.
“T&G have a portfolio of quality apples providing a solution for the varying taste profiles of consumers across multiple markets and is continuing to see strong demand across all our key markets,” Pipfruit Executive General Manager Darren Drury says.
He says the company’s growing operations across both hemispheres and four continents means they can “supply a year round solution for our customers across Asia, Europe, UK and USA” and gain further insights into each market.
“From research and in working closely with our trade partners we understand that European and UK consumers have a preference for more ‘tangy’ flavoured apples with good acid balance, varieties like Jazz, Braeburn and Royal Gala. While North American and Asian consumers enjoy sweeter varieties of Pacific Queen and Rose, Fuji and Envy.”
Mr Drury says both their IP varieties, Jazz and Envy, continue to build strong followings, with marketing for these brands focused on “encouraging trial and driving advocacy through vast sampling programmes in combination a range of packaging solutions, with in store activation and digital activity.”
“Jazz has a crisp bite, dense flesh and refreshing taste profile. Envy is a sweeter juicy variety, with flesh that doesn’t brown after it is bitten, sliced or chopped,” he says.
“Envy in particular is having incredible demand in both Asia and North America, which supports our strong growth in plantings. Demand in the UK and across Europe is also strong, with unprecedented sales of our IP varieties experienced during the northern hemisphere selling season,” he says, adding that demand for other varieties in the T&G portfolio is also growing.
“We are focussed equally on our apple portfolio highlighted by our IP varieties, Jazz and Envy, and trademarked variety Pacific Rose Royal Gala, Pacific Queen and other popular Enza varieties, as well as the wider produce offerings we have from our global T&G sales offices in New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Chile, South Africa, USA and Europe.”
While the start of the New Zealand season has been late in 2016, Mr Drury says that overall the fruit is “of a high quality, delivering a good eating experience.”
“[Last year] offered a cold, dry winter with a hot, sunny summer. These were ideal conditions for pollination and the Hawkes Bay region had some of the best blooms on record,” he says.
“The weather pattern has meant the internal maturity of the fruit has been very advanced with good sugar and pressure levels throughout the harvest. However, the diurnal temperature pattern change has not been as prevalent, and while the maturity has progressed the colour has been slower to develop across some varieties.”
He says there have also been weather variations in different growing regions across New Zealand that has had some impact on the season.
“Nelson has experienced a challenging season with a major hail storm in late December impacting all varieties across the region. Therefore, additional thinning was required to remove damaged fruit,” he says.
“Some heavy rain events have also disrupted the 2016 harvest but that has had little impact on fruit volume. With the exception of these weather events, the growing conditions were ideal.”
T&G is also looking to expand further, opening new offices around the world and partnering with Zespri on some regional marketing campaigns.
“T&G have entered into a three year arrangement with Zespri to market our collective fruit portfolio into Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia & Laos. We have recently set up an office in Bangkok to support this arrangement as well as T&G's business across the South East Asian region,” Mr Drury says.
“We have a team of key account managers based in Bangkok who will be providing in-market support for our customers for both T&G and Zespri products,” he says, adding that they are looking forward to receiving their first shipment of Zespri kiwifruit in early May.
“We believe this collaboration will leverage the strengths of both businesses providing the opportunity to market two of the world’s best fresh produce brands will enable us to present a strong offering to our customers and will allow both companies to achieve their growth plans for the region.”
T&G also has an extensive global growing network with growing regions stretching across thirteen regions including New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Chile, North America, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Korea.
Mr Drury says they are “committed to investing in global growing development” in many ways.
“As such, this month has seen European growers from across the UK, Italy and France visit the New Zealand growing regions to observe and discuss growing practises, identifying synergies and challenges considering new approaches and innovations for application to increase quality production and consistency across the respective regions.”
