A new report has found more than 10 per cent of the fruit grown in Central Otago is not being sold or eaten.
The Central Otago District Council commissioned the research to better understand how much fruit grown on orchards in the region isn't being utilised, as a first step to supporting ideas to reduce fruit loss.
The report was written by horticulture consulting business, Thrive Consulting, which based its findings off surveys and interviews with local growers.
It found 85 per cent of the apples, apricots, cherries, peaches, nectarines grown in Central Otago did leave the orchard for local and export markets, but the rest was not being sold or eaten.