First FON for Opotiki
First FON for Opotiki
Fraser Rd Orchard
A personal challenge and the opportunity to lift Opotiki’s kiwifruit-growing game – this is why the manager of Opotiki’s first Focus Orchard John Phelps signed up to the Zespri Orchard Productivity Centre’s programme.
John is an orchard manager with OPAC and manages the 10-hectare Fraser Road Orchard on the Paerata Ridge, west of Opotiki township across the ocean towards the distant East Cape.
Why Opotiki?
“We want to lift Opotiki’s game - that’s the aim. It doesn’t matter who you pack with, this region’s got something to offer,” John explained.
With around 10 percent of Zespri’s fruit grown in the Eastern Bay of Plenty, the warm climate with plenty of rain and thick, rich soils make the region one of the top growing areas in the country. Shane Max, Zespri’s orchard productivity manager for global supply, said the Focus Orchard Network was set up to help growers improve their orchards’ productivity and profitability and help them grow the premium-quality fruit that markets demand.
Orchard trials and demonstrations are a key part of the programme, taking new science and grower innovations out to orchardists.
“The local community was very keen to set up a FON, given its success in other areas,” Shane said. “It was a difficult decision choosing between the nominated orchards and all the managers were keen to participate, as they could see the value it could bring to the whole district.”
Zespri’s Beth Kyd has recently joined the OPC team and will be directly responsible for the Opotiki programme. Four field days a year will be held on the orchard and this programme is a great opportunity for local growers and their staff from all three local packhouses to get together and share their experiences and tips.
“We’ve found the FON programme in other districts has really helped bring the local growing communities together,” Beth said.
Why Fraser Road?
Fraser Road Orchard is at an elevation of 90m and has around 6ha of Gold3 grafted in 2011 and 2013, as well as 4ha of Hayward. High taste levels and improving productivity are a key focus for this orchard, which is owned a consortium of shareholders.
John explains his goal is to improve production from 8,500–9,000 te/ha for Green to 12,000 te/ha, as well as reaching 15,000 te/ha of good-taste, good-size 76 Gold3 – and putting himself up in front of his peers is an additional incentive to achieve those goals.
“I’m competitive and I don’t like to be beaten. I’ve got high standards and I beat myself up if I don’t achieve them,” John said, with a hint of a smile.
He describes kiwifruit as “a pretty good life” and moved to Opotiki in 2009 from Tauranga with his family – wife Claire and two young children. “I like the quiet little towns,” the Gisborne-ite, who takes full advantage of the area’s outstanding hunting and fishing, said.
How FON works
An orchard management team will be working with John and Zespri staff to determine their goals for the coming season. As part of the Focus Orchard Network programme, John and the
team will look right across the orchard and review everything from pest management, pollination, soil and leaf testing, Psa monitoring and fruit sampling methodology. There is also a formal reporting process at the end of the year to measure progress towards meeting those goals.
Sustainability is another area of interest for John. “We need to back up what we say. We call ourselves green in the marketplace – are we what we say?”
Being part of the FON is another way for him to tap into expertise in this area, which can then be shared with others.
“I’m looking forward to being closer to the information and meeting new people,” he said.
