Stormy Fruit

Apples with cosmetic damage from Nelson’s Boxing Day storm that would have ended up as wastage are being exported through Golden Bay Fruit’s new brand, Stormy Fruit.

By Anne Hardie

About 30% of the company’s apple crop including slight hail damage, russet and blemishes will fill about 200 containers this year to deliver to several countries seeking New Zealand fruit at a lower cost than Class 1 fruit. That’s between 200,000 and 300,000 TCE (tray carton equivalents) of apples that would have had no value to growers and would have been a cost to remove from the trees.

Golden Bay Fruit chief executive Heath Wilkins says the new brand has been a godsend after the hailstorm and though returns won’t result in a profit, they will help recover the costs of growing the crop and stripping the damaged apples from the trees. He says the company has been considering a Class 2 brand for years, then the Boxing Day hailstorm prompted the name and the incentive to quickly find customers who wanted the nutritional value of the fruit despite the cosmetic damage. “In the Nelson region we usually get a good pack-out, but there’s always about 10% of what you grow that is second class and it usually goes into juice or cattle feed. “I’ve been working in the business since I was 20 and in the past 30 years I can remember a good five to six decent storms, but they are generally trending worse. After the hailstorm on Boxing Day a lot of fruit was lost over and above usual hailstorms. They are getting bigger and worse.” He says the closing of the juice factory last year was a double whammy with the Boxing Day hailstorm and the time was right to establish the Class 2 brand for the company. A number of hail-affected growers in the area are also benefiting from the new brand. “We’ve had new growers come on board this year who saw the benefits of being able to manage their crop and have an outlet for their Class 2 crop.” For Golden Bay Fruit, the Stormy Fruit brand means it is achieving a pack-out of about 60% this year compared with the expected 30% after the hailstorm. The worst of the hail-damaged fruit was thinned from the trees onto the ground immediately after the Boxing Day storm. After that, it took time to judge the effect of the hailstorm on the remainder of the crop. “Some of the orchards we thought were total write-offs and didn’t see any hope of salvaging fruit. We thinned off 50–60% straight away and the rest we have actually picked and we’re getting about 60% recovery with about 50:50 Stormy Fruit and export grade.” Defect-grading technology in Golden Bay Fruit’s new packhouse in Motueka is being used to grade cosmeticdamaged fruit for the Stormy Fruit brand. It means the fruit is still good quality beneath its blemishes and Heath says it’s enabling them to capture the nutritional value of the fruit rather than wasting it. “If we can add value to something with nutritional value the same as Class 1 fruit and offer it to customers who may not be able to pay as much as Class 1 fruit, then that is a win-win situation. That’s sustainability. “We want this to be a brand known year-in and year-out, not just Class 2 fruit selling cheap.” He says they have full disclosure and partnership models with their customers for Stormy Fruit and the brand will carry on as part of the company’s stable of brands. The brand covers a range of apple varieties and Heath hopes they will be able to sell significant volumes of fruit through the brand in future.

The Boxing Day hailstorm left a trail of destruction on orchards across the region and in particular around the Riwaka, Motueka and Lower Moutere area. Pipfruit, kiwifruit, hops and vineyards all suffered major crop losses and more than 400 insurance claims were lodged for about $20m in total for loss and damage.

Golden Bay Fruit Chief Executive Heath Wilkins with a carton of Stormy Fruit Royal Gala