With a significant contribution to apple and pear variety development under its belt, the company looks ahead to what the next two decades might hold
New Zealand-based variety development organisation, Prevar, will celebrate 20 years in business this year. The joint venture between New Zealand Apples & Pears, Plant & Food Research (Plant & Food) and Apple and Pear Australia (Apal) was created in 2004 to develop and commercialise new apple and pear varieties for licensing in New Zealand and around the world.
In 20 years Prevar has commercially licenced 18 varieties, entered into 36 license agreements and holds more than 183 trademark registrations across the globe. Some of the distinctive IP varieties Prevar has developed are known as Dazzle, Rockit, PiqaBoo and Lemonade, with Sassy, Posh and Joli the latest additions to its portfolio.
In its current form, the Prevar business is centred on four core areas – consumer insights-driven innovation, a world-class breeding programme, customer-centred commercialisation, and industry and category leadership.
“We have a lot to be proud of in our first 20 years of business,” says Prevar chief executive, Tony Martin. “There has been a lot of investment over that 20 years to be able to create a sustainable business that provides better returns for our growers, continues to support our industry and that delights consumers with the products we create.”
According to Martin, Prevar re-invests a large portion of its revenue back into R&D to stay at the forefront of innovation and product development.
“At any point in time, we have a few hundred new varieties in stages of R&D that are narrowed down. Only the best make it into full production,” he explains.
Variety successes
While the rest of the world was investing in larger and larger apples, Prevar took the opposite route with PremA96. The naturally small apple has become popular under the brand name Rockit through strong marketing efforts by its owner Rockit Global.
“It’s an amazing success story where an entrepreneur saw the opportunity to take what was a small snack apple, put it inside a tube and build a great brand story that appeals to consumers in different parts of the world,” says brand manager Amanda Lyon.
Another win for Prevar has been the development of the distinctively red pear, PiqaBoo.
“There is nothing quite like PiqaBoo anywhere in the world,” Lyon says. “It’s a special IP variety that combines the very best of Japanese, Chinese and European pears with great colour, great flavour, great texture and great storability.”
Demand and excitement for PiqaBoo continue to grow as more consumers experience the unique offering.
“We believe that these next 20 years are going to see a revolution of the pear category, and we are excited to be at the forefront of that with our Piqa series,” Lyon says.
One of Prevar’s newest apple offerings, branded as Joli, comes out of a partnership with leading New Zealand apple grower-exporter T&G Global.
“We are really excited about this apple,” Lyon says. “It’s a bigger piece of fruit and incredibly juicy.”
The next 20 years
With a strong portfolio of existing varieties, a significant global licensee network, an ongoing partnership with Plant & Food and a deep pipeline of selections in new product development stages, the future looks bright for Prevar and the New Zealand industry at large.
“One thing we know for sure, the next 20 years will look very different than the last,” Martin says.
For Prevar, and many other developers, the environmental impacts of long-distance shipments are becoming less viable.
“There is an exciting future ahead that’s more sustainable with fruit growing closer to the consumer,” Martin says.
“While shipping the very best premium fruit from New Zealand to global markets will continue, this will be increasingly supported by the weightless export of our intellectual property.”
Martin sees this progression as the next step for the industry, promoting growth in breeding, technology and more sustainable practices.
“The first 20 years has been all about developing a really strong portfolio of products and brands that we can take from New Zealand to the world,” Martin says. “The next 20 years gives us an opportunity to really dial up the innovation to meet the ever-changing needs of our consumers and growers.”
