The Fruitfed Supplies team looks ahead to 2024

Going into the New Year, I took a moment to reflect on the past 12 months and concluded that, without doubt, 2023 was the most challenging year I have seen in the industry since I took over leading the Fruitfed Supplies business four years ago. 

Despite these challenges, the horticulture sector remains a fantastic industry to be involved with and we can’t lose focus on this.

We never take your support for granted and, on behalf of the Fruitfed Supplies team, I thank you for your continued support of our business and people over the past year and into the future. Fruitfed Supplies is fortunate to have some of the most passionate and highly skilled individuals in the industry in our team and, together, we strive to help support our growers and add value to your businesses every day.

As you will be aware, 2023 delivered numerous challenges in the shape of reduced returns, fruit quality and continued inflationary pressure on costs. We aim to support growers through the good times and bad, while focusing on delivering the advice and support you need to grow quality crops, access the right products and quality services to help you make the best decisions you can for your operation.

We can’t talk about 2023 without talking about the weather! The impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle are long lasting. Even now, many months later, it is still hard to fathom the devastation caused by this storm to some growers, their wider communities and the sector as a whole. Recovery from this and other major weather events in the east and north will take a long time and we’ll be here, continuing to support all those affected.

Getting products to our clients on time continues to be an important focus for our team. After the disruptions of recent years, supply chain consistency and deliveries are returning to normal with most products in good supply. Over the past 12 months, we have invested in several new delivery models around the country and are looking to further invest in additional logistic strategies to ensure we can handle and store sufficient product to meet grower demand.

We have maintained our focus and investment in the research and development aspect of our business. Many product trials are conducted across New Zealand by our Technical team each season as we work alongside our suppliers to bring new, effective products to market. Among these are numerous biological products and our team is proud to conduct robust trial work with these potential products that could offer growers important new choices for crop protection.

The Fruitfed Supplies team contributes to our wider industry in various ways, with a number of staff on advisory boards, involved in industry organisations, and contributing to industry events. We value being able to contribute to and support our industry and your communities with sponsorships and other initiatives.

The success of our business comes down to the great people who put on a Fruitfed Supplies shirt each day. It’s not just a phrase – we really mean it when we say our people are our greatest asset. It’s their knowledge, skills and enthusiasm for finding the right solution which allow us to support you with specialist technical expertise, in-depth and relevant research, and an ongoing emphasis on innovation.

Horticulture is our passion here at Fruitfed Supplies. We love being part of your business and value being able to support you in your horticultural endeavours. Our sincere thanks for your business over the past 12 months and we look forward working alongside you again this year.

May it be a positive and productive one for all of us.

Best wishes,
Duncan Fletcher
Fruitfed Supplies National Manager