Richard Hill of Mr Apple won the Joe Bell Trophy for outstanding service to the industry. Photo / Supplied
Richard Hill of Mr Apple won the Joe Bell Trophy for outstanding service to the industry. Photo / Supplied
The future of Hawke's Bay's horticulture industry was on display at the Hawke's Bay Fruitgrowers' Association Industry Awards Night on Thursday.
Awards for outstanding service to the industry and innovation in horticulture were presented, with the graduation of horticulture students from the Eastern Institute of Technology and Primary ITO also being celebrated.
The Joe Bell Trophy, awarded for outstanding service to the industry, was presented to Richard Hill of Mr Apple.
"For the past 20 years, Richard has been an intricate part of helping the business grow from 1.3 million cartons to 4 million of its own production," a release from the Hawke's Bay Fruitgrowers' Association said.
The Fourneau Trophy for innovation in horticulture was awarded for the Green Atlas Cartographer, a collaborative project between Dr David Manktelow (Applied Research & Technologies), Jack Hughes, Fruition and the Green Atlas company, based in Sydney.
Jack Hughes (Fruition Hawke's Bay), left, Jason Bennett (Fruition Hawke's Bay) and Dr David Manktelow (Applied Research & Technologies) - recipients of the Fourneau Trophy. Photo / Supplied
"The Cartographer is an innovative and patented combination of hardware and software that accurately counts both flower and fruit counts over entire orchards," the release said.
The Hawke's Bay Fruitgrowers Association Charitable Trust, in conjunction with funding from the New Zealand Fruit Growers Charitable Trust, also provided 18 scholarships for students living in Hawke's Bay and working towards their Level 4 Industry Training Qualification.
Donna Wilson of Bostock NZ won the Organic Pipfruit Growers Award as the Top Organic Trainee.
The Fred Horrocks Memorial Awards for overall excellence in Horticulture were presented to Jareth Russell (T & G Global) at the Eastern Institute of Technology, and Evelyn Lennox (T & G Global) at Primary ITO.
Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst, who spoke at the awards ceremony, said it was great to recognise and celebrate excellence in the industry.
"Our horticultural sector is one of the largest contributors to our region's economy adding close to $1 billion to Hawke's Bay's GDP and employing around 8000 fulltime employees and seasonal workers," she said.
Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said it was great to celebrate excellence in the horticulture industry, which is one of the largest contributors to the region's economy. Photo / Supplied
"Over the past nine years the industry has grown by 12.5 per cent each year, however as we know, this is only sustainable if we continue to invest, train and grow great people, who grow great produce, build on the industry's success and grow prosperous communities."
Meanwhile the total 2021 apple crop for Hawke's Bay is estimated to be 2 per cent greater than last year.
However New Zealand Apples and Pears project the gross national crop to be 558,672 metric tonnes – 5 per cent down on 2020.
CEO Alan Pollard said access to a reliable seasonal workforce combined with shipping logistics issues present real challenges.
"However, New Zealand is a highly organised and reliable supplier, and our customers around the world can be confident that we will continue to supply high quality product this season," he said.
