From The Chair
It would be great to write an industry message when everything is positive. I’ve been waiting a while for that one – like my longstanding promise to sell the business when things are going well – here I am still safely ‘employed’!
The present is no different; difficult markets, competition from imported fruit and rising costs. Last month I spent time in Japan viewing our squash arrival and then on to Europe with a mix of holiday and business which included cereal production, technology providers and research farms.
What I found there was interesting. Squash had a very poor season in the wholesale market and somehow managed to get worse at season’s end. Europe was sombre as well – dry, heatwaves, fertilser and fuel prices and low grain prices. So these aren’t just New Zealand problems, or citrus issues, they’re the conditions everyone is working in.
What became apparent was without change, expecting a different outcome, is unlikely.
The proof of that is sitting in our own squash business. Moving from wholesale to a retail strategy took more work and time – 10 years of commitment, but the outcome has been a sustainable market return and a genuinely positive mood heading into the upcoming season. In Europe, I saw the same thing – growers who were positively tackling the problem head on. Reducing costs, investing in technology and doing everything possible to make their product better and fit for purpose. In short, being the best that they could be and yes, profit was lower than what they wanted, but it was still a profit and when the factors align, that focus gets rewarded.
What does that have to do with citrus you may ask? We need to learn and try new ideas, and some of those will take time and a long view. We can’t afford to hand the market an opportunity to reject or devalue our product – an assurance scheme driven by growers and for the benefit of growers, could be one such option worth exploring.
Making every tree pay, through attention to detail and optimal resource allocation including technology, is what gets you through the tough seasons and sets you up to make the most of the good ones.
The Board now head into budget season with much better information around cost and income and a clear desire to spend where it delivers the best return on your hard-earned levy. There will be hard decisions and not everyone will agree with all of them, but the more the industry gets in behind this, the more that can be achieved and that part is genuinely in our hands.
Looking forward to the industry forum, and to the conversations that come out of it.
Regards,
Hugh Ritchie
In Depth
Annual Planning Day Resets Project Framework Process
We’ve recently reset how projects are advanced under a new framework to separates technical advice from strategic direction from delivery. The Technical Advisory Panel (TAP) recently came together with the Board, our new Biosecurity and Market Access Manager Rob Silberbauer, and Aotearoa Horticulture Action Plan Programme Manager Anna Rathe for a planning day to consolidate this thinking.
The Board’s purpose is clear: to build an enduring, thriving, innovative citrus industry, and to support growers to maximise productivity and profitability. The planning day set out to identify what’s standing in the way of that, and where the real opportunities sit.
The day generated 34 outputs, grouped by theme under the Horticulture Stack framework – the same seven-layer framework Tomatoes NZ has used to identify opportunities in its own research and development, and one the wider Aotearoa Horticulture Action Plan is now making available to other crop groups, including smaller and emerging crops like citrus, to prioritise where R&D effort is most needed. Through this process the group ranked projects by priority for further progression: 14 high, 10 medium and 10 low. TAP has now been engaged to prioritise these and put a recommended list to the Board for consideration.
We expect that list next week, and it will be socialised with growers at RAG meetings in early August. These projects will be levy funded, and some hard decisions will be needed on the level of investment for the 2027/28 financial year, which members will endorse at the AGM on 17 September.
In the meantime, please keep an eye out for the upcoming SHED Talks dates and if you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact Jo at
Building A Clearer Picture of Citrus in New Zealand
Citrus NZ will shortly begin the Sector Ground-Truthing project, building a verified picture of the sector’s footprint by hectares and variety.
At present, planted area and varietal split are estimated. In a biosecurity incursion, where knowing exactly where the crop is can be the difference between a fast, targeted response and a slow, costly one. It strengthens the work we do on market access, research investment cases and advocacy – all of which are stronger with verified numbers behind them.
The project has been in development for several months, and we’ve worked with packhouses on how grower information, particularly varieties and hectares, is currently captured, so the process will help identify trends and support forecasting and planning decisions for nurseries, growers and businesses.
Information will be hosted on the Landkind platform www.landkind.com and time-stamped annually, with an annual report provided back to the industry.
Levy members will receive an email in the coming days setting out what information is being collected, the purpose of collection, and how it will be used, in line with Information Privacy Principles.
Forum and Industry Awards Night
‘Backing Growth in a Changing Landscape’
We’re excited to share details of our upcoming Forum, taking place on 17 September at The Vines, Gisborne. This year’s event brings together the Forum, our AGM and the Industry Awards Dinner – here’s what you need to know.
Forum
This year’s Forum asks what it will take for citrus to become a genuinely investable, high-growth sector – from the value-chain thinking behind other primary sectors’ success, to rethinking citrus as a platform for future value rather than a commodity, to what actually builds category confidence with consumers. We have some exciting speakers lined up including Professor Hamish Gow, Sir Graeme Harrison Chair in Global Value Chains and Trade, Lincoln University, Dr Victoria Hatton, CEO FoodHQ and panel discussions throughout the day facilitated by Te Radar, who’ll also emcee our evening dinner again this year. Full programme and speaker details follow next week.
Our trade stand corner this year focus on technology and innovation. If you’re interested in a stand or a sponsorship opportunity, view the prospectus here or email . We’d encourage businesses to secure a spot before the end of the month to make the most of the promotion leading up to the event!
Annual General Meeting
The AGM will be held on 17 September at The Vine. Key dates:
Board nominations open: 3 August
Member motions close: 3 August
Board nominations close: 17 August
Meeting papers distributed: 2 September
AGM: 17 September
There is one position available on the Citrus NZ Board, with Jason Galloway stepping down as part of a structured Board rotation policy. Nomination forms are available on our website from 3 August. Motions can be submitted to .
Industry Awards Dinner
Our Industry Awards Dinner will be held on the evening of 17 September – a chance to celebrate the achievements of our members and our industry. We’ll be recognising individuals who have contributed in the following areas:
Emerging Leader Award – download the nomination form
Innovation Award – download the nomination form
Orchard Sustainability & Practice Award – download the nomination form
Industry Champion Award – download the nomination form
To nominate someone you believe is deserving of one of these awards, please complete and return the relevant nomination form by 17 August.
Dinner bookings open next week – keep an eye out for an email with full details, or book through our website when bookings open. Table and individual tickets will be available, so gather your colleagues and save the date!
Thank You To Our Sponsors!
Events like these are only possible with the generous support of our sponsors. This year we are incredibly grateful for the support of K-Fruit Kaiaponi as Principal Sponsor of the 2026 Forum and Industry Awards Night.
A huge thank you also to those who have already come on board for this year’s Forum and Awards Dinner:
We’re grateful for your commitment to supporting our industry!
Interested in becoming a sponsor?
There’s still time to get involved! Sponsorship is a fantastic way to raise your profile, connect with industry professionals from across our communities, and show your support for the sector. A range of sponsorship packages is available . To find out more, contact Jo Pentreath at info@citrus.co.nz or download the prospectus here.
Industry Support
Citrus NZ welcomes Rob Silberbauer, founder of Silverleaf Research Ltd as Citrus NZ’s new Biosecurity and Market Access Advisor.
Rob has been providing advisory and programme management services across several horticulture sectors, including pest and disease management, biosecurity, export market access, and industry data collation and presentation services.
Rob currently serves as Project Manager for Blueberries NZ and as the elected Chairperson of Strawberry Growers NZ, alongside contract work in morphological identification of horticultural invertebrates and one-off industry advisory projects. His experience spans industry sub-committee and technical team management and grower extension activities, giving him broad, practical experience across multiple horticultural sectors beyond citrus.
We’re delighted to have Rob supporting Citrus NZ and look forward to benefiting from his experience and expertise. He can be contacted at biosecurity.trade@citrus.co.nz.
In Brief
2025/26 Market Monitoring Report Available Now
Our Market Monitoring Report covering 1 April 2025 – 31 March 2026 has just been released, with insights into this market trends during this period Download it here. Also available in the Members Portal on our website.
Navel Monitoring Programme Update
Distribution Centre testing is progressing well for our Navel monitoring programme with weekly results being released every Friday to our navel growers. Thank you to the QC teams at both Foodstuffs and Woolworths for their ongoing support of this programme. Week six results will be released later today.
Alongside this programme, Citrus NZ is currently running a six-month trial of a non-destructive testing tool for navels, alongside the current destructive independent testing method, to assess whether it’s suitable for wider adoption across the industry.
Data is being collected and analysed by Pasulon Contracting and Delytics and a recommendation on adoption will presented to the sector at the end of the trial period.
Data will also be collected on late-season navels, as part of an evaluation exercise into the quality of fruit picked later in the season. The aim is to understand whether late-season fruit is delivering the eating experience that keeps consumers coming back. Thanks to all the packhouses supporting this work.
Market Access
Citrus NZ currently has one market access project underway- Meyer lemons into South Korea. MPI has submitted our requirements to South Korean authorities and is now awaiting their formal response. We’ll update members as soon as we have more to report.
Organic Growers
Organic growers who would like to connect with other organic growers are welcome to register their interest here. By opting in, growers understand that their contact details will be shared with other participating organic growers to support connection and information‑sharing.
Advertising Opportunities
Want to get your business in front of the citrus industry in the ladup to the Forum?
Citrus News is published bi-monthly to over 750 readers. With the forum coming up, it’s a great time to boost your visibility and connect with growers and industry players.
Email here for the 2026 rate card.
Upcoming Events
November Citrus News ’25
19th November, 2025
A warm welcome to Citrus NZ’s new chair, exporter updates and recent activity for CNZ.
Read more
September Citrus News ’25
08th September, 2025
Next week we look forward to hosting citrus growers in Gisborne for our AGM, workshop and Industry Awards Night
Read more
July Citrus News ’25
10th July, 2025
In this edition- launch of our Industry Awards Night, AGM date and our On-Orchard Workshop in September!
Read more