Kiwifruit growers eager to move ahead with Govt plan

Biosecurity Minister David Carter. Photo / Christine Cornege

Kiwifruit growers have shown strong support for a $50 million plan to fight a bacterial disease threatening the $1.5 billion industry.

Biosecurity Minister David Carter said yesterday $25 million would be provided by the Government to fund an "urgent, aggressive strategy" subject to a dollar-for-dollar match from the industry.

"By [tonight] we expect confirmation from growers and industry that they are prepared to accept the package," Carter said.

New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers president Peter Ombler said that at a meeting yesterday of 400-500 people in Te Puke, two people voted against with everyone else in favour, while a meeting of 250-300 people at Kerikeri voted unanimously in favour.

"I think we are getting ourselves into a position whereby hopefully by [tonight] we can pin our ears back, roll our sleeves up and, difficult as it is, we can have a go."

The bacterial disease Psa has so far been found at 28 orchards.

Satara Co-operative Group managing director Tom Wilson said the company and its growers' forum supported the aggressive management plan.

The financial backing for the strategy seemed fair, Wilson said.

"You've got to land on a number and you're not going to satisfy everybody when you apply one or two numbers to the whole of the industry because everybody's got different circumstances," he said. "But just looking at it we think it's commercially pretty close to where it should be."

The pace of action and the release of information was rapid, Wilson said.

"We're at least a year ahead of what happened over in Italy."

Outbreaks of Psa in Italy and Korea reduced production by 50 per cent and 90 per cent respectively.

Seeka Kiwifruit Industries chief executive Michael Franks said the package was a positive sign of the Government's support.

"Here we are 13 days in and we've got $25 million from the Government."

The funding package would cover a range of actions, including limited grower compensation for income loss, management techniques and research into the disease.

Even with the plan's compensation, grower losses over the next two or three years are expected to be about $25 million.