Although it is very early in the season, kiwifruit crop volumes are looking promising – and if growers remain vigilant and have a sound crop protection programme they will have the best opportunity for success, says Tony Hawken, chief executive officer of EastPack.

Tony Hawken, chief executive officer of EastPack says good decision making will help speed up recovery.

That promise is another plus for an industry hard hit by the vine disease Psa-V, says Tony, who believes there is a growing sense of confidence within the industry.

'A lot of industry stakeholders are in a better headspace than they were this time last year, but it is too early to say we are out of the woods completely,” says Tony.

'It's important we all stay focussed on making good decisions going forward to speed up the recovery pathway.”

Communication key
As part of that process, EastPack has a strong focus on developing its technical capability and the way it communicates with growers, says Tony.

'For example, EastPack offers Structured Orchard Visits to give growers the opportunity to plan the critical upcoming activities on the orchard, especially relating to Psa. Growers tell us this gives them real confidence in their ability to maximise production in a Psa environment.”

The postharvest industry has also been hard hit by the impacts of the disease and reduced crop volumes.

Merger works
'At EastPack, we take a medium to long-term approach to strategic decision making. EastPack recently merged with Satara and rationalised operations to utilise our most efficient sites. One of the most pleasing aspects of the merger was our ability to retain a high proportion of personnel, which has led to a very smooth transition.”

Tony says one of the best things EastPack can offer growers is consistently strong returns thanks to its grower-owned structure, which returns all profits to growers in the form of packing rebates and grower dividends. 'Over the last 24 months, our grower base has grown by 115 new kpins [orchards]; and this gives us confidence that we have something very powerful to offer growers, and that is genuine opportunity.

'Psa has been extremely challenging for kiwifruit industry stakeholders, especially growers. We are very fortunate to have largely unified industry, which is prepared to pool resources to give growers the best tools to help speed up the recovery pathway,” says Tony.