New Zealand exporter Turners & Growers (T&G) believes a survey it commissioned shows New Zealanders disagree in principle with the country’s single-desk kiwifruit exporting system.
A media release from T&G stated the phone survey carried out by Colmar Brunton found 85 per cent of respondents believed the government should promote free and fair trade for all New Zealand kiwifruit exporters.
The survey also found that 82 per cent of respondents believed that in light of the recent PSA outbreak Zespri’s monopoly should be repealed and growers should be allowed to export varieties besides those owned by Zespri.
A majority of people polled (62 per cent) also believed the government should repeal Zespri’s kiwifruit export monopoly given that the company wants to grow kiwifruit in China and other countries that compete with New Zealand kiwifruit, stated the media release.
In a letter addressed to the country's Prime Minister, John Key, T&G chairman Tony Gibbs outlined the results of the survey before underlining his company's view that Zespri's single-desk status be revoked.
“As a country championing free trade, New Zealand had to be squeaky clean when it came to its own affairs and yet it has the world’s last remaining statutory monopoly, Zespri,” said Mr Gibbs. “New Zealand kiwifruit growers and owners are banned by their own country from exporting fruit that they own,” he added.
“We cannot ask other countries to remove trade barriers when all New Zealand kiwifruit growers are forced to sell through Zespri, and owners of non-Zespri kiwifruit varieties are banned from selling their fruit anywhere but Australia and New Zealand,” Mr Gibbs continued.
“New Zealand growers should have the right to choose which fruit they grow and who they sell to, especially considering there are now numerous innovative new kiwifruit varieties, while Zespri still only markets two.”
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