Pukekohe’s Fong family marks 75 years of vegetable growing, calls for Govt support for sector

Commercial vegetable grower Allan Fong, of Pukekohe. Photo / Trefor Ward

This year will mark the 75th anniversary of Allan and Colin Fong’s father growing vegetables commercially in Pukekohe.

The family has continued to produce fresh vegetables for New Zealanders ever since, through many sector changes.

Their growing operation has expanded from just over five hectares to about 255, and they have been at the forefront of adapting to changing consumer demands, including pioneering mesclun salad.

Now, as growers face an increasing raft of regulations, Allan Fong said Government action was needed to ensure New Zealand growers could continue to adapt and keep the country supplied with fresh vegetables at affordable prices.

He is supporting calls by Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) for the Government to acknowledge how important enabling the supply of fresh vegetables is to the nation’s health.

HortNZ is calling for the development of a National Environmental Standard to make vegetable production a permitted activity, provided growers are operating to good management practices.

Climate and soils limit the areas where production can occur.

HortNZ has warned that without a standard, production will be restricted and there will be a steep increase in vegetable prices.

Fong pointed to 1943 as an example, when the Government recognised the importance of commercial vegetable producers, including the many Chinese growers, to feeding troops and the country in wartime.

At the suggestion of Prime Minister Peter Fraser, the New Zealand Chinese Federation of Growers (NZCFG) was formed.

Chinese market gardeners upped their vegetable production dramatically to meet the need.

Today, the NZCFG, the world’s only national Chinese growers’ organisation, continues supporting members and agricultural technology and promoting sustainable farming.

They are continuing a proud tradition.

Chinese growers in New Zealand have played a pioneering role in introducing diverse vegetable varieties such as bok choy, daikon, and bitter melon, which were once rare but are now staples in many Kiwi kitchens.

Fong said that as growers faced proposed regulations aimed at reducing nitrogen run-off, recognising the importance of commercial vegetable producers was as critical as ever.

“Vegetable growers believe in what we do and the importance of our role in keeping fresh vegetables on the tables of every New Zealand household,” he said.

“To support a healthy population, growers need to have healthy businesses, and the increased costs of growing vegetables has an impact on our ability to grow and supply fresh vegetables to consumers.

Allan Fong’s family has grown vegetables in Pukekohe for 75 years. Photo / Trefor Ward

“Vegetable growers are price takers and are really vulnerable to the effects of supply and demand.

“This last season has been really tough.”

He said vegetable growers were accustomed to adapting to change.

In 1950, his father, Goon Fong, began farming with his father, and in 1960 he bought about 5.5 hectares of land in Pukekohe, which he leased to his father’s partnership – going solo to grow on it himself from 1963.

Allan joined the family business in 1976.

After his father’s death in 1993, he and his mother also began growing tomatoes and cucumbers.

Colin joined the operation, and they expanded their range.

In 2000, Allan and fellow Pukekohe grower Raymond Jivan visited the United States and saw the growing popularity of mesclun-type salads.

They formed a joint-venture partnership to produce baby leaf salads.

Today, the Fongs employ 80 permanent staff and have continued to innovate.

They specialise in a growing range of crops including a variety of cos lettuce, stem broccoli, stem cauliflower, coriander, baby spinach and a variety of Asia greens.

Fong said it was a major change from their main crops of the past, such as beetroot, silverbeet, leeks and spinach, but there is a limit to how much commercial growers can continue to adapt without Government support.

“Any decisions that make it harder to access land and space to grow impact how much we can produce, and the price at which people buy their vegetables increases.

“I worry about the impacts on supply, prices to growers and consumers and our resilience if we do not have the land available to grow on.

“What will happen to the supply if we have weather events but no resilience?

“We, like other vegetable growers, work really hard to grow the best quality produce and manage our impacts.

“We have new tools available like the Sustainable Vegetable Systems tool and Codes of Practice, which help us make good decisions and manage our environmental impact.

“We can only do this work when we have a healthy business.”