Seeka Kiwifruit Industries and Splice Fruit are to oppose Zespri Group's Notice of Appeal against parts of a recent High Court judicial review decision on collaborative marketing.

The High Court, in a fast track judicial review decision dated May 3, overturned decisions by regulator Kiwifruit New Zealand to reject three proposed collaborative marketing agreement applications submitted by Seeka and Splice Fruit late last year.

Seeka wanted to export 400,000 trays of green fruit to Hainan Island in China. File photo.

The High Court ordered Kiwifruit NZ to re-hear the three applications. After the rehearing, Kiwifruit NZ again rejected the applications.

Seeka wanted to export 400,000 trays of green fruit to Hainan Island in China and 120,000 trays of green fruit to Xinjiang province in China.

A Zespri spokesperson says Zespri filed a notice of appeal on June 1 as 'a procedural step which allows us to preserve the right to appeal the decision while we decide whether clarification of the High Court's judgement is required on the broader collaborative marketing principles”.

'Our notice of appeal does not relate in any direct way to Seeka and Splice's collaborative marketing applications,” the statement says.

Seeka chief executive Michael Franks says Seeka Kiwifruit Industries and Splice Fruit filed notice that they will oppose Zespri's Notice of Appeal.

'We are looking to cooperate with Zespri to get through this legal process as efficiently as possible.”

The principles Zespri seeks clarification over include the extent of collaboration now required for collaborative marketing and whether or not Zespri can engage in collaborative marketing programmes under the regulations, without KNZ's approval.

'Zespri continues to support the positive role collaborative marketing can play in adding value for NZ growers. Twenty one collaborative marketing programmes were accepted by KNZ for the 2016-17 season,” the statement says.

Kiwifruit NZ is responsible under the Kiwifruit Regulations for approving collaborative marketing applications for the New Zealand kiwifruit industry.

Under the Kiwifruit Regulations, Zespri is the primary exporter of NZ-grown kiwifruit beyond Australia. However other exporters can apply to KNZ with proposals to export NZ-grown kiwifruit in collaboration with Zespri, where they can demonstrate this increases the overall wealth of NZ growers.

In 2015/16, 15 companies operated 28 collaborative marketing sales programmes, selling just over 1.6 million trays of New Zealand kiwifruit.

After receiving the collaborative marketing applications for the 2016 season, KNZ received legal advice that the appeal process it has run for a number of years was not permitted under the Regulations and removed the right for applicants to appeal its decisions.

Two of the applicants whose applications were declined by KNZ chose to refer this to a judicial review process and the High Court went on to direct KNZ to reconsider three 2016 collaborative marketing proposals from Splice Fruit and Seeka Kiwifruit under appeal.