Zespri's record forecast for green and organic green kiwifruit is fantastic news and a well-deserved reward for hard working growers, says Te Puke organic grower Dennis Robinson.

Today Zespri announced per-hectare returns for green growers of $52,987 and organic green at $42,207, along with increased grower returns across all categories.

Green orchard gate returns are the highest per-tray since 2003.

The per-hectare returns are averages across the industry and many growers will receive above those figure.

Dennis says the pay-out will help growers in their continuing battle against the bacterial disease Psa. 'The disease is not going away, is not cheap to control, and we need to remain vigilant,” he says.

'Fortunately for growers, the New Zealand kiwifruit industry is at the top of its cycle, while dairy is probably close to the bottom.”

In the past, organic green returns have been significantly higher than for conventional green fruit, but while organic returns have remained fairly stable, green per-hectare incomes have surpassed organic this season.

'The issue for organic growers now is to increase yield,” adds Dennis.

Zespri Chief Executive Lain Jager says the returns are the result of great work from growers, the post-harvest sector, the Zespri team onshore and in the markets and its retail and trade partners.

The overall result reflects some unique, one-off factors.

Lain says: 'A shortage of supply of green kiwifruit from Chile and constrained supply of gold kiwifruit from New Zealand have supported pricing, while Zespri's foreign exchange hedging policy has mitigated against the strong value of the New Zealand dollar.”

In the latest December forecast, green orchard gate return per tray has increased 20 cents to $5.91 – the highest per-tray returns since 2003 – compared with $5.71 forecast in October and $5.23 in 2013/14.

This increase reflects lower fruit loss in Europe and Japan and fewer quality claims in Europe and East Asia.

Zespri estimates that a combination of strong sales and pricing, and an early, tidy finish to the season which allowed for reduction in promotional spending has added around 60 cents to the final Green OGR.

The forecast organic green OGR per tray is up 28 cents to $7.09. The forecast gold OGR is up 15 cents to $9.72, supported by higher average pricing in East Asia, and the forecast green14 OGR has increased 14 cents to $7.12.

'This result is a credit to the hard work and determination of our industry,” says Lain.

'Our industry still faces challenges, as we continue the recovery from Psa, but we have much to be positive about.

'Looking to next season, we will keep our focus on communicating health to consumers, developing markets and delivering great-tasting fruit through the most efficient supply chain possible.”