Tuesday, 12 January 2021 10:30

Cherry crop takes a beating

Written by  Staff Reporters
Summerfruit NZ say that while weather has caused this season's crop to take a beating, they say they're thankful for the help they've received this season. Summerfruit NZ say that while weather has caused this season's crop to take a beating, they say they're thankful for the help they've received this season.

Central Otago cherry growers have been dealt another blow, with heavy rain earlier this month causing major damage to matured fruit.

Although the full extent of the damage is yet to be quantified, it is expected that up to 50% of the season’s bumper cherry crop has been lost due to splitting, resulting in the loss of $50 million in export revenue to the country.

Additionally, flooding caused damage to orchard buildings located around Earnscleugh when the Fraser River broke its banks. The impact of the weather event isn’t confined to just this season as damage to trees will potentially affect next season’s crop.

The news comes at a point when growers were starting to feel optimistic that most of their fruit would be picked thanks to the fantastic response from New Zealanders and stranded backpackers helping with the harvest.

While summerfruit growers are aware of the role weather plays in their livelihoods and make preparations to mitigate it, the persistent and heavy nature of the rainfall had not been experienced in 40 years.

“It is incredibly sad to see growers lose so much of their crop in this way,” says Summerfruit NZ chief executive Richard Palmer.

“Growers are working hard to harvest the remainder of the crop, and with good weather ahead there is still substantial work for pickers and packers,” Palmer adds.

“We also feel for all the people who came to help with the harvest as they responded so generously to the industry’s call for help.”

Palmer says that damage to other summerfruit crops provides ongoing opportunity for some harvest staff.

“We are working hard to assess what the impact will be on both orchards and the workers, and are looking at how we can keep people in work for the summerfruit harvest followed by apple, grape and pear harvests.”

Summerfruit NZ says the industry is also grateful for support provided by the Ministry of Transport to ensure flights to export markets were maintained despite the ongoing rain and uncertainty.

More like this

New Summerfruit NZ CEO

Dean Smith has been in the role of CEO of Summerfruit NZ for about four months, having succeeded Kate Hellstrom at the end of September.

Bumper cherry exports in 2024

New Zealand cherry producer Southern Fruits International expects to send up to 340 tonnes of luxury cherries to the global market this summer - just over double that of the volume sent last year.

Featured

National

NZ growers lead freshwater compliance

Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) says that commercial fruit and vegetable growers are getting ahead of freshwater farm plan regulations through…

Machinery & Products

Yamaha acquires Robotics Plus

New Zealand based company Robotics Plus, a specialist in agricultural automation, has announced an agreement for it to be acquired…

Ecorobotix announces NZ dealership

Swiss-based Ecorobotix has announced its entry into the New Zealand market through a strategic partnership with Canterbury-based New Zealand Tractors.

Sorting unwashed potatoes made easy

Downs, a leader in potato reception, automated sorting, and storage, has introduced its new high-throughput optical sorter for unwashed potatoes…

Jumbo X saves time and money

A winner of a prestigious ‘Technical Innovations 2024’ award by FederUnacoma at the EIMA show in Italy, the Maschio Jumbo…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Overbearing?

OPINION: Dust ups between rural media and PR types aren't unheard of but also aren't common, given part of the…

Foot-in-mouth

OPINION: The Hound hears from his canine pals in Southland that an individual's derogatory remarks on social media have left…

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter