Zespri brand riding high in the US, up against more competition in Europe

Zespri is exporting more kiwifruit to Europe and the US this year. Photo / Alan Gibson

Zespri has good and less good news from two important Northern Hemisphere markets, ending last season as the top-selling kiwifruit brand in the US for the fourth straight year, but reporting a noticeable increase in kiwifruit brand competition in Europe.

The New Zealand marketer said more than 51 million trays of fruit were sold across Europe and North America in the 2023 season, generating more than $1.1 billion in sales.

In an update to growers, it noted increasing competition in the fruit category in Europe, with a surge in fruit brands offering a premium product.

There had also been a noticeable rise in kiwifruit brands, particularly in Europe, said new president of Europe and Northern America, Steven Martina, in the market update.

However, there was a lot of room for growth in Europe, including in its core markets of Spain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Italy, with more fruit destined for that market this year, Martina said.

“At the same time, we are developing our presence in the UK, Portugal, Austria, Switzerland and the Nordics ‒ we want to make sure we stay ahead of our competitors.

“We’re looking forward to ramping up the volumes we sell, including the uplift in green this year, in order to increase the value of the fruit and the return to our growers.”

More Zespri fruit was also heading for the US this year than last season, Martina said.

Zespri was this year focusing on expansion into US markets, with planning under way on a new consumer marketing campaign to support a strong start to the 2024-2025 season.

The US had “huge” potential and Zespri was working with retailers there on plans ahead of fruit arriving in May, he said.

While fruit export volumes were lower last season due to the legacy of extreme weather events in New Zealand, a labour shortage and associated fruit quality issues, Martina said global demand for Zespri fruit had stayed strong, with almost 42 million trays sold in Europe and 9.3 million trays in North America.

Total Europe sales were almost $930m, he said.

The rise in competition in Europe meant greater competition for shelf space.

“With the 2023 season’s earlier finish driven by lower volumes and demand also continuing to exceed our Northern Hemisphere supply, we were prevented from providing continuity to our retail partners, which sees us having to reinvest ahead of the 2024 New Zealand season and facing stiffer competition from other kiwifruit brands,” Martina said.

He noted that for the first time in a decade, discount retailers such as Lidl and Aldi were the fastest-growing sales channel across Europe.

“Discounters are growing faster than e-commerce, reaching an all-time high of almost 19 per cent market share in western Europe, and we are continuing to look at how we meet our consumers’ differing demands through different pack sizes and consumer deals.

“Other trends include the move to fewer but bigger retailers as a result of mergers and acquisitions, and stores expanding to cover multiple sales channels, with this giving us the chance to seize new opportunities.”

Zespri is owned by past and present New Zealand kiwifruit growers. It is entitled by regulations to export all New Zealand kiwifruit, except to Australia.

The marketer’s global operating sales revenue in FY23 topped $4b.

Andrea Fox joined the Herald as a senior business journalist in 2018 and specialises in writing about the dairy industry, agribusiness, exporting and the logistics sector and supply chains.