ORGANIC QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE

Organic conversion takes a minimum of three years from the last non-sanctioned input to the orchard. By careful management, orchardists can harvest crop at year 0 as conventional, years 1 and 2 as organic conversion, and year 3 as certified organic.

Organic product commands a premium return per tray with growing demand from the highest-returning markets. Improvements in organic orcharding techniques have dramatically increased yields over the last five seasons which have significantly improved orchard returns per hectare.

BioGro charges modest application and yearly auditing fees. Organic on-orchard costs are comparable to conventional orcharding costs, however yields from the year 1 conversion typically drop 15-20% and one count size. Yields and count size improve from year 2 onwards. Conversion crops are paid as conventional product, and do not attract the organic premium.

WaimapuOrganics will offer five-year lease options to suitable orchards to help manage cashflow during the conversion period.

From a small base, there is a growing demand for Gold Organic, with WaimapuOrganics involved in securing the long-term viability of this developing category. Gold Organic attracted a $2 per tray premium from harvest 2007.

The top performing orchard supplying WaimapuOrganics from harvest 2007 achieved more than $60,000 in orchard gate returns per hectare.

Orchard leasing is a popular method for orchardists to manage their investment in the kiwifruit industry, with Seeka the industry’s largest orchardist, cropping nearly 10 million trays each season from 1100 hectares of Green and Gold orchards.

Seeka is experienced in developing greenfields orchards, and converting conventional orchards to organic.

Orchards are assessed prior to undertaking a lease contract, with Seeka able to offer attractive funding options to convert suitable orchards to organic production. Leased orchard conversions are usually for a five year period so orchardists can access cash advances during the conversion period.

Contact Peter Weaver if you require more information