Zespri
Diversifying growing origins and cultivars to protect kiwifruit supply
Climate-related procurement risk: Heat, drought, changing rainfall, reduced winter chill, extreme weather, pests, disease and disruption to year-round fruit availabilityÂ
Solution pathway: Climate-informed supply planning, diversified growing origins, resilient cultivars, improved growing systems and adaptation researchÂ
Business type:Â Grower-owned marketer and fresh produce exporterÂ
Sector: Horticulture, fresh produce and global food supply chainsÂ
Geography: New Zealand, with wider global growing regionsÂ
In practice
Fresh fruit supply markets depend on stable growing conditions, predictable harvest windows and consistent product quality. Kiwifruit is particularly sensitive to climate conditions because orchard productivity depends on factors such as winter chill, temperature, rainfall, water availability, pest pressure and disease risk. As these conditions change, a business relying on one crop and limited growing regions can face reduced availability, variable quality and greater procurement uncertainty.Â
Zespri has recognised climate change as a direct risk to its ability to supply high-quality fruit year-round. Its climate adaptation approach focuses on future-proofing supply through climate insights, new cultivars and improved growing systems. This includes using climate information to guide supply planning, assessing risks for new offshore growing regions and investing in cultivars and rootstocks better suited to future climate conditions.Â
The company’s approach is market-facing as well as farm-facing. Zespri sells into global fruit markets where customers expect reliable supply, quality and timing. By diversifying growing origins and developing more resilient cultivars, it can reduce dependence on any single location or seasonal production window. This helps protect the availability of fruit for customers and reduces the risk that a regional climate shock turns into a wider supply-market disruption.Â
Zespri’s strategy also includes sharing knowledge with growers and supporting adaptation at orchard level. This matters because procurement resilience cannot be separated from production resilience. If growers are not able to adapt to hotter, wetter, drier or more variable conditions, the supply market becomes less reliable for buyers and customers.Â
The case is useful for this section because it shows a fresh-produce business adapting the structure of its supply market. Rather than only responding to individual crop failures, Zespri is planning around future growing suitability, cultivar performance and the geography of supply.Â
Why this example was selected
This case study was curated because Zespri has published a dedicated climate transition and adaptation approach that explicitly links climate resilience with year-round supply, cultivars, growing systems and origin diversification. The company’s plan identifies physical climate risks across its value chain and sets adaptation goals focused on climate insights, resilient cultivars and future growing systems.Â
The case has also been externally covered by industry media, and its relevance is supported by wider scientific literature on climate risks to kiwifruit production. Peer-reviewed research identifies kiwifruit as vulnerable to rising temperatures, reduced winter chill, erratic rainfall, pest and disease pressure, and changing growing suitability, while also highlighting cultivar development and growing-system adaptation as key response strategies.Â
The example is useful for the Business Knowledge Hub because it shows how procurement and supply-market resilience can be built into long-term crop strategy. For businesses that depend on fresh produce, reliable markets may require changes to where products are grown, which varieties are used and how supply is planned across regions.Â
