Our Research & Development Knowledge
At Fruitfed Supplies, our Research and Development (R&D) team conducts over 50 product trials a year, testing how a product performs in local conditions and trialling it alongside other products within a spray or control programme. For growers, this provides a level of reassurance that when a new product is used, it delivers results.
With first-hand knowledge of how a product performs, Fruitfed Supplies has a real advantage in understanding a product’s technical application. Technical Specialists in the Extension team transfer this information to in-store representatives and Technical Horticultural Representatives to provide growers with the most up-to-date product choices as part of a tailored spray and control programme.
Future-proofing growing practices with biologicals and softer chemistries
The use of traditional broad-spectrum pesticides and insecticides as a first choice of control within a horticultural or viticultural crop protection programme is now in the past. Increasingly growers are utilising softer chemistries and biopesticides within their integrated pest management (IPM) programmes to control pests and diseases and to meet strict export requirements.
With a greater emphasis on registering softer chemistries and biologicals for use in New Zealand, the Fruitfed Supplies Research and Development (R&D) team conducts trials measuring their efficacy in local conditions.
The Importance Of Trials
Fruitfed Supplies works closely with industry bodies and suppliers across a range of crops to prioritise and run product trials. Fruitfed Supplies’ trials, as Kevin Manning Technical Manager explains, are of great importance to the horticultural industry. “With fresh produce exports facing phytosanitary barriers, growers want to be confident their produce is ready for export. The bar is very high; to ensure access to a number of export markets, growers face zero tolerance for a range of pests and diseases.”
The Research and Development team is involved in product trials for two or three years before the assessed product may gain registration for use in New Zealand. When that product arrives in PGG Wrightson retail stores, a sound knowledge of the technical application of the product already exists amongst the Fruitfed Supplies team and customers can be reassured the product has been objectively assessed. It has the "Fruitfed Technical Tick", as we refer to internally.
What we trial:
The breadth of assessments conducted is wide ranging across the horticultural sector. Our Technical Advisors trial various agri-chemical, biological and organic products in areas such as pest and disease control, plant growth regulators, herbicides for weed control and dormancy bud breakers. We not only look at product efficacy, but with equal importance, test to determine if a product damages a crop or fruit.
In most growing situations, products are not used in isolation but rather alongside other products within a control programme. For this reason, along with efficacy, Fruitfed Supplies’ trials assess what products are compatible for use within a programme. As a grower this information, including product choice and timings, is critical when creating a successful spray or control programme in consultation with a Fruitfed Supplies Technical Horticultural Representative.
Vonny Fasi
Research & Development Manager
Vonny joined the Fruitfed Supplies Technical Team in 2016 having previously worked at Lincoln University, the Foundation for Arable Research and Bayer Crop Science. Vonny's passion is helping farmers find solutions to problems through the use of her and her team's technical expertise.
Erin Garnett
Technical Advisor - Bay of Plenty
Erin joined the Fruitfed Supplies Technical Team in July 2021. Prior to this, Erin was a Senior Technician in the Biosecurity and Biocontrol teams at AgResearch. Erin enjoys combining her research skills, and biosecurity and entomology knowledge, and applying these skills to situations where plant protection is important.
Catherine James
Technical Advisor - Pukekohe
Catherine joined the Fruitfed Supplies Technical Team in 2020. She has previously worked in various roles, with both glasshouse tomato, kiwifruit, and blueberry crops in the Pukekohe region. Catherine enjoys collaborating with suppliers to bring new products to market that improve crop quality and production for growers.
Sjaan Greig
Technical Advisor - Blenheim
Sjaan joined the Fruitfed Supplies Technical Team in July 2023. Previously, she worked at Matua as a Vineyard Manager in Marlborough. Before that, Sjaan was involved in the horticultural industry while based in Christchurch. Sjaan is passionate about R&D trial collaborations, to create meaningful outcomes for all involved including our suppliers, growers and store teams.
Karen McCallum
Technical Advisor - Canterbury
Karen joined the Fruitfed Supplies Technical Team in 2021. Prior to starting at Fruitfed Supplies, Karen worked in the apple and kiwifruit industry in a Technical Managers role in Nelson/Tasman. Now in Canterbury, she works with our suppliers, trialling products over a range of crops including onion, potato, brassica, fodder beet, cereal, corn and peas.
Kirsty Lowther
Technical Advisor
Kirsty joined the team at the Fruitfed Supplies Hastings Store as a Customer Service Representative in March 2021, having finished a degree at Victoria University. Keen to further her career in horticulture, she joined the Research and Development team in August 2023. Based in Hastings, Kirsty enjoys doing trial work across Hawke’s Bay and feels a sense of satisfaction contributing to the long-term future of the industry while working alongside reps, suppliers and growers.
Our Technical Extension Approach
Imparting knowledge from our R&D trials is our Fruitfed Supplies Technical Extension team. Our Technical Specialists share findings from the wider industry, new product releases and R&D trials, the Extension team ensures our Technical Horticultural Representatives and store teams provide reliable and up-to-date technical advice to growers.
