Former Zespri chairman John Loughlin has joined Havelock North Fruit Company (HNFC), according to Hawkes Bay Today.
Loughlin will chair the grower-packer-exporter’s board of directors, while also continuing his existing chairman roles with kiwifruit post-harvest firm EastPack, Powerco and the Tru-Test Corporation.
HNFC holds the exclusive rights to the Rockit apple variety, with the small-sized offering being sold in plastic tubes across New Zealand, the UK, Italy, North America and Asia.
“Rockit has entered the fast moving consumer market, where we can drive demand with innovation and quality marketing,' Loughlin told Hawkes Bay Today. 'I have a real passion for creating added value in the primary sector. New Zealand is about feeding the world and our future is with the high-end customer developing niche products, just like Rockit.'
