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Process Vegetables New Zealand

AGM and Conference Papers3rd – 5th August 2016, Rutherford Hotel, NELSON

2016

Contents Agenda 3

Draft Minutes 28 July 2015 Rotorua 7

Chairman’s Annual Report 2016 15

Audited Financial Statements for Year Ended 31 March 2016 19

PVNZ Annual Accounts 1 April 2015 – 31 March 2016 24

PVNZ Draft Budget Forecast 2016 – 2017 25

Income/Expenditure 2015/16 and Forecast 2016/17 26

Speaker Profiles 27

Process Vegetables New Zealand 2016 AGM & Conference Papers

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Process Vegetables New Zealand AGM & Horticulture Conference 2016 Rutherford Hotel, Heaphy Room 27 Nile Street West, NELSON

A G E N D A Wednesday 3rd August 2016

(For those arriving early you may wish to join TomatoesNZ speaker sessions being held in the Waimea Room)

11:15am Andrew Barber, Director, Agrilink ‐ Waimea Room Topic: Greenhouse Nutrient Discharge AGMARDT Project Outcomes

12:00pm Michael Bledsoe (Ph.D.), Village Farms International, USA Topic: North American Tomato Growing ‐ Challenges and Solutions

12:30pm Lunch – Waimea Foyer

1:30pm PVNZ Annual General Meeting (AGM) – Heaphy Room

1:30pm Process Vegetables New Zealand – AGM Welcome and Introductions Apologies, Proxies and Procedural Motions Confirmation of 2015 Conference Draft Minutes & Matters Arising

1:35pm Chairman’s Annual Report – David Hadfield

1:55pm Audited Financial Statements PVNZ Annual Accounts ‐ 2015/2016 PVNZ Draft Budget ‐ 2016/2017

2:00pm Confirmation of Election Directors Chairman

2:15pm General Business Matters from the meeting

2:30pm Conclude PVNZ 2016 Annual General Meeting

2:30pm Afternoon Tea – Waimea Foyer

3:00pm Erin O’Donoghue, Plant and Food Research – Waimea Room Topic: The Secret Postharvest Life of Tomatoes

4:00pm Conference Registration 4:30pm Horticulture NZ Annual General Meeting – Maitai Room 6:00pm Cocktail and Welcome Function – Matai Foyer

(Sponsored by United Fresh New Zealand Incorporated)

7:00pm VNZI CAG / PVNZ Dinner – Oceano Restaurant, Rutherford Hotel

Process Vegetables New Zealand2016 AGM & Conference Papers

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Thursday 4th August 2016 7:45am Registration 8:20am WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION Barry Sloper, MC 8:30am PLATINUM SPONSOR ADDRESS Plant and Food Research 8:45am KEYNOTE SPEAKER William (Bill) Marler Food Safety Advocate / Food Poisoning Attorney, USA ‘How to avoid the lawyers coming calling on a food safety issue’ 15 minutes panel Q&A 9:30am ROBOTICS

Robotics and intelligent systems Professor Salah Sukkarieh, Sydney University

‘Use of robotics in horticulture – unlocking potential’ Steve Saunders, Robotics Plus 15 minutes panel Q&A 10:15am DRONE TECHNOLOGY Potential for drone technology in

horticulture Simon Morris, Altus USA NZ Young Grower of the Year &

Drone enthusiast Hamish Gates, A.S. Wilcox and Sons 15 minutes panel Q&A 11:00am Morning tea – trade exhibition area 11:30am INNOVATIVE TRENDS Challenges and opportunities

associated with change Ian Proudfoot, KPMG 15 minutes panel Q&A

10:15am GREAT WHITE BUTTERFLY ERADICATION PROJECT – Session 1

Chris Green, Department of Conservation Q&A session Waimea Room 11:15am Morning tea – trade exhibition area 11:45am GWB AND THE FUTURE GIA PARTNERSHIP – Session 2 Geoff Gwyn, Erik van Eyndhoven, Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) Andre de Bruin, VNZI Chairman Mark O’Connor, VNZI Board John Seymour, VNZI General Manager Waimea Room 12:45pm Finish


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12:15pm PEST AND DISEASE MANAGEMENT Using technology to identify pests and diseases

Nick Pyke, Federation of Arable Research (FAR)

Using smart phone apps for soil fertility Greg Lauer, AgAlytics Australia

Using innovation to make your business more efficient Colin Brown, TracMap 15 minutes panel Q&A 1:00pm Lunch 1:45pm Delegates are invited to participate in the afternoon activities to allow the venue to

transition for the Conference Dinner and Awards Evening. Please remove all personal belongings from the conference room.

1:45pm BEER & BRASSICAS

Bus Trip 1 WINES & WAIMEA

Bus Trip 2 1:15pm Packed lunch on board the bus

1:45pm Tour of Brassica Crops with Mark O’Connor

2:45pm Travel to McCashin’s Brewery 3:00pm Brewery tour and tasting 4:15pm Travel back to Rutherford (Trip limited to 45 participants)

1:15pm Packed lunch on board the bus 2:00pm Waimea Nurseries tour (new variety and

rootstock development, new tree forms (e.g. twin leader trees)

3:00pm Travel to Mahana Winery 3:15pm Wine tasting & tour (organic winery) 4:00pm Travel back to Rutherford Hotel (Trip limited to 45 participants)

OR

INNOVATION CHALLENGE Don’t miss this! Have you always fancied that you would win the Amazing Race? Use the technology

that you carry in your pocket to guide your team, solve clues and carry out pit stops in our customised Innovation Challenge around Nelson city.

DINNER AND AWARDS EVENING Cocktail Function, Dinner, Awards

5:30PM COCKTAIL FUNCTION ADDRESS FROM SPONSORS ‐ Countdown and T & G Global 6:30pm WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION Te Radar, MC Address by sponsors, T & G Global Address and Presentation of Awards by: Hon Nathan Guy, Minister for Primary Industries

- Pipfruit NZ Award for Outstanding Contribution - Horticulture NZ Industry Service Award - Horticulture NZ Life Member - Horticulture NZ President’s Trophy - Bledisloe Cup


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Friday 5th August 2016 8:00am Tea and coffee 8:40am KEYNOTE SPEAKER Nadia Lim, My Food Bag 15 minutes panel Q&A 9:30am FOOD SAFETY

Innovation through research Nigel French, NZ Food Safety Centre

Innovation through regulation Scott Gallagher, Ministry for Primary Industries 15 minutes panel Q&A 10:15am SUSTAINABILITY

Innovative solutions for sustainability Professor Emeritus Ian Warrington, Massey University 15 minutes panel Q&A 11:00am Morning tea – trade exhibition area 11:30am HEALTH AND SAFETY

Health and safety solutions for farms Ryan Higgs, Onside

Technical working group GRASP Gary Jones, Pipfruit NZ Inc 15 minutes panel Q&A 12:25pm CLOSING ADDRESS Hon Nathan Guy, Minister for Primary Industries Thank you and farewell Julian Raine, Horticulture New Zealand Inc 1:00pm LUNCH AND FINISH


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DRAFT MINUTES of the Annual General Meeting of Process Vegetables held at the Energy Events Centre, Rotorua on Tuesday 28 July 2015 at 10:00am

____________________________________________________________________

Present: David Hadfield (Chair), Dean Davies, Jim Sim, Hugh Ritchie.

Also in attendance: Also in attendance: Andy Lysaught, Carole Wheeler, Owen Gedye, Mike Forge (Judco Ltd), Matt Sowerby (Judco Ltd), Jan Lepoutre, Grant Kikstra, Grant Morris (PFR), 2 other Industry Participants, Mike Flynn (McCain), Tony Howey (HortNZ Director), James Kuperus (Minute Secretary)

1. WELCOME & INTRODUCTIONS

The Chair welcomed members to the Process Vegetables NZ AGM and thanked the conference sponsors.

2. APOLOGIES

Members noted apologies from John Evans, Hamish Dodson, Bruce Snowdon, Jeff Wilson, Norm Speers, Jan Lepoutre, Ron Dribble, Edward (Ted) Hill, H Wensley Jackson

JIM SIM / OWEN GEDYE

3. Obituaries

One Minutes’ silence was observed in remembrance of the following persons who had passed away during the 12 months:

Bruce Allen, Hastings P Woolley, Blenheim

4. PROXIES

Given that no motions were being considered at the AGM, the meeting did not require proxy voting.

5. CONFIRMATION OF 2014 PVNZ CONFERENCE MINUTES AND MATTERS ARISING

IT WAS RESOLVED that the minutes of the AGM held on the 24 June 2014 be accepted as a true and accurate record of the meeting.

HUGH RITCHIE / DEAN DAVIES

MATTERS ARISING There were no matters arising.


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6. PVNZ CHAIRMAN’S ADDRESS – DAVID HADFIELD

GIA and Crop R&D work has received a lot of attention, we will come back to GIA later. We have been talking to other product groups and FAR on potential collaboration on working together on like-minded positions. Meet with MPI on Thursday to outline who we are and what we do. Most of our farmers are actually built around arable and sheep. The collaborative approach will be us signing the deed but somebody else monitoring it and they’ll be the first to respond and then pass onto us. MPI understands our position, they are keen to move forward. They have 54 groups, currently 4 signed with another 4 close to crossing the line. We will need to consult with growers and get mandate from them,

RMA: Having to start thinking about farm environment plans. HortNZ (NZ GAP), Far or other industry bodies. It will depend on what your main focus is. If you are an arable grower you are probably going to go FAR.

Overseer still has many issues. Current squabble going on, government organisations are arguing over who is running the organisation

VR&I: Agrichem workshop yesterday. Working well. MPI has asked us to apply for a PGP for 7 years with 50% funding. Making good progress on the minor crop use off label registered for use here. Many chemicals from oversees not currently being used here.

Product Group R&D: In healthy position, we have good reserves, hopefully get some more bean research done over the summer. Carrot research is coming to an end now.

Thank Andrew Jones for his input over the years and welcome Hamish Dobson into position.

IT WAS RESOLVED that the Chairman’s address be accepted. John/Don Asender/JIM SIM

7. PVNZ ANNUAL REPORTS

The Chair referred members to the 2014/15 financial statements in the meeting papers.

Key points: PVNZ returned a small surplus of $6,631 this financial year compared to the previous

2013/14 surplus of $87,759. It was commented on that the income this year was significantly below the previous two years due to reduced sales.

With the additional surplus this year, this brings the PVNZ reserves up to 413k. Grant Thornton are going to do a 4 year audit of the PVNZ accounts to spot any

anomalies and report back. This in line with good governance and is due to be done again.

Our R&D expenses are up slightly, only a result of allowing for projects we haven’t signed off on yet, but have allowed for.

Meetings and travel, we have streamlined that more. Down to a one day meeting in August/ September. A lot of committee members in the SI now. Office expenses stable.

We will be looking into using reserves if we take on all projects and


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Key Points 2015/16 PVNZ Budget Forecast:

1 PVNZ sales value forecast to increase from $55m to $65m compared to the declined value declared this year.

2 PVNZ levy forecast of $280k for 2015/16 is higher than the actual levy income of $229k for 2014/15 with the assumption that the sales value will increase back from the declined value this year of $55m to $65m.

3 R & D Budget has increased to $166k from $138k last year to cover current and new projects referenced in the PVNZ Strategy.

4 PG Meetings & Travel have been forecast down from $73k to $55k due to a decrease in overall income.

5 Office & Communication expenses at $97k are in line with the 2014/15 actual.

IT WAS RESOLVED that the annual report and accounts be accepted as presented

GRANT KIKSTRA / JIM SIM

8. CONFIRMATION OF PRODUCT GROUPS MEMBERS

The Chairman sought two nominations for Director of Process Vegetables NZ currently held by: Hamish Dodson and Jan Lepoutre. As there were no other nominations received, Hamish Dodson and Jan Lepoutre were duly re-elected as Directors of Process Vegetables NZ.

9. CALL FOR NOMINATIONS FOR PVNZ CHAIRMAN

James Kuperus from HortNZ, in the absence of John Seymour, Business Manager of PVNZ called for nominations for the position of Chair for PVNZ currently held by David Hadfield. With no nominations being received, David Hadfield was duly re-elected Chairman of PVNZ.

10. DISTRICT REPORTS

Hawkes Bay Presented by Hugh Ritchie

This report will be one of two halves reflection of the season just finished and contemplation of the season just about to begin.

The 2014 pea season in most respects was good. An exceptional run of high yielding peas set the season up for a good production year and coupled with the late requirement for extra tonnage and some marginal country in use the total required tonnage was achieved which was very good for the processor as this had not occurred for the last couple of seasons. The only negative was a larger than normal bypass area following the very high yields.

The beans yet again went well and exceeded yield expectation and this for a third year running has led to an inventory issue and some tonnage correction will be required going forward. Carrot tonnage was at contract requirements and no issues during the season which was a similar situation to sweetcorn and beetroot. There was a problem with sweetcorn seed with some of McCains paddocks. These were replanted and I haven’t heard of an issues following on from this.


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All in all the growers and processors where happy with the season and the climate pattern certainly helped to create some very good crops, again we need to learn how to create that output every year. McCains had their grower award evening recently and this was well attended and appreciated by their growers.

The coming season is not totally set yet and most of the indications is for a similar season to last. However as mentioned the bean area has been reduced significantly and also a reduction in price this has been signalled as a response to a very large carry over from the previous seasons. The pea area will be down on actual from last year but similar to the original area required for 2014 before the extra was required. I have not heard requirements for other crops but it appears status quo is expected.

The climate is expected to be drier than normal and so dryland crops especially dry land could struggle. With feed grain prices depressed by dairy returns process contracts could be in demand. This may allow the processors to leave out some of the more marginal land this season.

Gisborne Presented by Dean Davies

Time to wrap up what turned out to be an above average season for the Gisborne growers, finally being able to outperform land in Tolaga Bay/Wairoa. Which due to dry conditions later in the harvest period for sweetcorn, were unable to compete with Gisborne which received regular light rain when needed to maintain crops.

PEAS - Were once again a mediocre option for most growers, with Cedenco once again delaying planting till August - and the cold and the rain that comes with that month. Ultimately that decision bit them on the arse, running out of time at the other end of the planting window and not being able to plant the last 50Ha. Tolaga Bay crops were a total bust due to excessive ponding. Gisborne crops helped fill the gap but even that couldn't stop Cedenco not getting the tonnage required.

SWEETCORN - Planting started on time and continued with no real hiccups right up till Christmas, reasonable moisture levels ensuring good germination of all crops. Harvest started well, but with dry conditions at the time reduced yields were the norm. Lodged crops following Cyclone Pam created headaches, but had no real impact on ground conditions due to continuing dry. The last crops to be harvested caused some problems, as too much was planted back in late December and the powder factory capacity was not enough to handle the volume, result - over maturity leading to bypass of 21Ha.

SQUASH - Good season, good crops, good quality, still a promising crop to grow for process. Cedenco still has product laying in the field now, which probably will be disced in due to excessive production.

TOMATOES - Another above average season on yield, especially for the later planted crops which performed very well (100T per Ha) helping increase volume into the factory and helping ease pressure on the harvesters in the field.

APPLES - Trees planted in Wairoa to supply the factory are growing well and Cedenco is still actively seeking more growers to plant more to ensure continuity of supply of the varieties they need.

ONIONS - Steady


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KIWIFRUIT - Increased volume processed now that everyone has a handle on PSA.

As to the 15/16 season ahead: Peas - 300 Ha pencilled in to plant. Corn - area to hopefully stay the same.

With Cedenco having a farming/cropping division they are acutely aware of production costs for growers and fully realise that prices received by growers are unsustainable and need to increase, however with the importation of cheap (rubbish) maize effectively killing that market, plenty of land is available for the coming season so any increase in price is unexpected.

Mid Canterbury Presented by David Hadfield

After a very disappointing previous year rebellious pea growers threatened to plant winter forage early and leave process crops out of the ground in the spring. However the pea contracts were promptly oversubscribed as soon as they were offered.

Peas were planted and emerged in perfect conditions, and the dry sunny weather continued throughout the growing season. A lack of northwest wind enabled growers to achieve record yields where adequate moisture was available. In some isolated areas hail caused problems for all crops in November. Late planted crops suffered heat damage at Christmas, regardless of irrigation although this wasn’t realised until harvest.

Generally process peas performed well with average returns a lot better than last year. The factory kept up with the season and peas were harvested at optimum TRs enabling growers to achieve a better return per hectare without necessarily getting a yield increase. A small area of peas were lost during the hot period at New Year.

Sweetcorn was exceptional this year but with a very small area planted. The outlook is for no sweetcorn this spring.

Summary: The east coast had very little rain since the autumn, but despite this Mid Canterbury has performed exceptionally well with record breaking crop yields across the district and has grown superb winter feed. Mid Canterbury is a role model for what irrigation can achieve.

Marlborough District Presented by Hamish

The winter so far in Marlborough has been dry and cold with the amount of rainfall to date still not making up for the lack of moisture needed to recharge areas that suffered from the dry Summer/Autumn. If this continues and affects river levels heading into Spring and Summer we could have another growing season were the ability to irrigate crops becomes an issue for some growers.

Peas – Talley’s remains committed to still growing peas in the district with a similar area sought to last year.

Corn – The average yield last season suffered due to the dry summer Marlborough experienced and in some areas growers’ irrigation being cut off due to low river levels. This resulted in a shortfall in the tonnage required. For the 2015-2016 season, area is looking to be increased in the hope that all sweetcorn can be grown in Marlborough however a contract has not been finalised yet.


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Beans/Carrots/Spinach – No significant change to the tonnages for these crops, with spinach and carrots grown in house due to the need for specialised planting/harvesting equipment. Spinach planting was completed to schedule because of very few hold ups due to rainfall. So far emergence has been good but slow on account of the cold soil conditions.

Canterbury District Presented by Jim Sim

We thought that the end of last season was challenging but this spring summer was the worst since 1988-89 for being dry. With a slow cold start crops were doing fine with cereals and grasses really benefiting.

Those with plenty of water and a means of applying it quickly enough to keep up really benefited this year.

Broad beans this season was good with above average yield and good quality. Peas were more challenging with the first half of the season being average the latter half was more difficult with the hotter dryer finish to the season. There was some bypass latter with the maturity being condensed with the higher temperatures and difficulty keeping up with irrigation. Beans The warm dryer season benefited the bean crops. Whole bean volumes were lower than expected but other types made up for this with better yields and quality.

The baby carrot harvest is about two thirds through with very good yields and quality. The main carrot harvest is still ongoing.

The prospects for next year tonnages are looking similar to this year. The new pea contract is a better deal than last year with the price staying the same ant payment being brought forward to the month following harvest and an added 4% bonus for quality if the loads meet a set criteria.

The other issue growers are grappling with are Overseer budgets and Farm Environment Plans. I'm sure it would be more encouraging to growers if Overseer actually accounted for all crops and stock combinations so we didn't have to tweak the information to get a report and the irrigation companies would accept any Farm Environment Plan not their own plan which doesn't fit in with a crop growing environment.

11 General Business

GIA It was expressed that we are going to get nailed somewhere along the line for an incursion through a lack of systems or biosecurity checks. The example was given of when the Warehouse brought in a shipment of contaminated strawberry plants. Some felt that the HortNZ board dropped the ball when GIA came in and we are no longer united. The general consensus was that the government has a gun to our heads and that we may as well have the opportunity to share our opinion on biosecurity matters that impact on us. The example was given of 10-15 years ago with the import health standard we wanted more say on it but didn’t.

Discussion moved to how would it be best for processed vegetables to join. Under the general plan it is select 5 diseases, rank them and say they’re going to damage our industry. FAR have explored a pathway approach instead. FAR has the Australia chair of pathways. He said that we have been tackling GIA the wrong way. We should be looking to collaborate where possible, so FAR has proposed setting up a group that would sign the deed as one party with FAR. MPI has moved along way and is now willing to talk to groups within the primary industry together.


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If there was an incursion as is status quo, how would it be funded? MPI can pass the cost of the incursion directly to the effected growers under the Biosecurity’s Act. If it was an incursion that effected a carrot crop, then they (MPI) would look at the analysis and MPI wouldn’t bother looking to combat the incursion. It would be if you guys can control it go ahead, but we will not get involved. The only thing that MPI may be interested is sweet corn, as it may be a fruit fly host.

A lot of these issues get bundled into one, in reality if there is an incursion it will be only 4 or 5 pests that will have great impact to the horticultural crops.

Question was asked why we don’t have preventative measures in place. By signing the deed then we have a say around the import health standards and preventative measures. General feeling is that we need to be inside the door.

At this present point of time, we are going to have a discussion (at the next meeting) around the FAR proposal. The Chair met with the GIA Secretariat on Thursday. If we do proceed, then we will need to get consultation. As per what consultation is that is fairly open and ambiguous. MPI are slowly realising that it is going to be quite difficult to manage all the various crops.

CONFERENCE/ AGM 2016 We are down to the hard-core few again. FAR are looking to have an Ag week of conferences, E.g. wheat etc. It would then be up to the growers to decide which AGMs/ conferences they go to. PVNZ is going to continue to discuss this with FAR and LandWISE. Some members at the AGM feel that the problem is that there are also two other AGMs going on at the same time and growers can’t attend the processed one. There was also the PotatoesNZ one the week before. Discussions concluded that it would be nice to have more people at the AGM discussing the issues that are important to them, but there isn’t much more that the committee can do to encourage people along.

PVNZ STRATEGY It was raised that we are probably hitting about 50% of where we should be on yields. Going forward, if we are going to create the drive and the energy for all of these crops, then we need to start looking at what our issues are going to be in 5-10 years’ time and where we need to be spending the money to lift the industries productivity. Historically half of our budget has been going towards operations and not research. We need to look at our income and ask what strategies we should be funding. Looking at what Potatoes has done over the years has been fairly impressive and we as an industry need to decide whether we as a research group are getting the best bang for our buck from the HortNZ Strategy or not.

With the overseer research, they have found that the grass is soaking up more nitrogen than previously thought. How are councils going to approach this?

Canterbury has a good matrix for dealing with overseer. If you have the whole system in place and you say we have this crop, you should have this in process in place and then you should plant this crop next. There is a lot of work that needs to be done around this sort of research. Hugh has asked that the committee for more of a long term strategy.

It was raised that the council has a strategy it is now about how we are going to deliver on this strategy. We can’t deliver on them, with the current funds. Question was asked whether we should be targeting the processors as well to fund more of the research activities as it is in their best interests for us to increase our yields. It was pointed out that they do currently join in on a lot of the projects. It was suggested that processed vegetables are yield sensitive not price. There was strong opposition to this opinion. As growers, we want high prices and yield sure. As


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an organisation, we are trying to increase yield, but Watties in Canterbury runs at capacity year on. If we can lower our price then they may want to expand their factory and increase returns back to the grower per hectare. In reality we have four main factories, they have a marketing team each that has to sell the product they are processing. There are instances where there is slight drop in prices and the exporters are able to sell twice as much. It depends on what the grower is happy getting. It is about reducing costs as well.

Based on the current levy at the moment, what will need to happen for the council to achieve its strategies? We can move our levies and we have some built up reserves currently. FAR set their levy at 0.8%, if we wanted to double our levy we would have to put a pretty good case forward. There is some very interesting research going on currently that we are not involved in that we perhaps should be. Question was asked when was the last time we chased up on Squash and Onion contracts. Squash we don’t have any say over. Onions is tricky to do, but something that can be done through the audits.

HONORARIUM 2015 Annual Honorarium / Daily Fees Review and Confirmation: The Chair left the room whilst Jim Sim covered the Honorarium. Honorarium is currently $15,000. It was asked how the board feels about this. The board hasn’t discussed it before. Last time there was a lift was a quite a while ago. Several years ago. If you take into the meetings and honorarium etc it is more than our research budget. If we are looking to increase the honorarium then we should be really looking at our whole budget and income and ask why we are not spending more on R&D.

If we look at lifting the levies, then we need to take a bigger look at what we are going to get out of it all. We can’t just expect greater results from just pulling out of other areas of the budget. Discussion moved back to the Honorarium and there was unanimous support in lifting it.

IT WAS RESOLVED that the Honorarium should be lifted by $1,000 and that the attendance fees should be retained at $250 for the chairman and $200 for executive members.

ANDY LYSAGHT /GRANT KIKSTRA

AGM closed at 11:50am.

Dated this ______________ day of ___________________ 2016

………………………………………. David Hadfield – Chairman

Process Vegetables New Zealand


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Chairman’s Annual Report 2016 ‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐Your board has been involved in many areas over the past year. As detailed below we havemoved a considerable distance down the track with our GIA negotiations. We have been activelyinvolved in Resource Management Act (RMA) work in all our growing regions. Covering suchitems as Nutrient Budgeting, Farm Environment plans and the ongoing Overseer work, wateruse efficiency and allocation, and many ‘right to farm’ issues. We have also been active in ourparticipation in the Vegetable Research and Innovation Board. Our 3-year Carrot researchproject results have not been ideal in the last year. However, there have been very successful bean field walks held, with the majority of growers attending; also the Pea Industry development group was re-established and an update of the Sweetcorn Toolkit is in progress.

With GIA and Biosecurity at the forefront at the moment we have been active in the Velvetleaf response and the Pea Weevil response in the Wairarapa in seed pea crops. Both these incursions could have very costly consequences for the process sector.

GIA and Biosecurity

A proposal has been drawn up for a triangular arrangement between Horticulture NZ, Process Vegetables NZ and FAR (Foundation for Arable Research). This proposal will enable the Process Vegetables NZ (PVNZ) product group to partner with MPI (Ministry for Primary Industries) under the GIA Deed process without becoming an Incorporated Society. The benefit of this “triangular” arrangement is that Process Vegetables NZ will be able to minimise the high cost of becoming an Incorporated Society, yet still allow discussion and influential input with MPI on GIA discussions and negotiations. Another benefit of this proposal is that FAR along with other arable sector groups are working collectively and have formed a group to represent their GIA interests. This includes Federated Farmers, NZGSTA, PZPBRA the flour millers and several other groups. This joint group will then be able to represent arable farmers across as many crops grown as possible whether they are for seed, feed or processing.

For example an incursion of Pea Weevil under this three way arrangement will result in Horticulture NZ being the signatory to the GIA Deed (on behalf of PVNZ) and then the operational negotiations and administrative functions will be undertaken jointly by both PVNZ and FAR.

After a GIA Deed is signed an Operational Agreement (OA) will be devised and negotiated to cover the roles, responsibilities and outcomes for each party including MPI, FAR and PVNZ. Pre-Deed discussions to date have emphasized that immediacy is paramount when a suspected incursion is detected. Notifications to FAR/PVNZ should be within 24 hours subject to a positive identification of the potential pest / virus or disease.

After the OA is agreed all affected parties will have pre-determined lists of contacts with MPI and industry, in the event of an incursion then a pre-determined structured plan would take place. This is likely to include positive identification confirmation of an incursion. In which case MPI would undertake a series of steps including a controlled zone area to contain the pest or disease, dependent on whether it was a “one off” or one of a number of detections over a wider area. If this is the case then a number of further pre-determined steps will be managed by MPI and industry partners. If the long term discussion is one of eradication then an allocation of costs would be determined and distributed. As part of this agreement a new Biosecurity Levy will be setup to cover PVNZ’s share of the costs.


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PVNZ R & D Projects

The PVNZ product group is midway on completing the strategic R & D plan to focus on five core crop projects including:

The review, updating and now the reissue of the “Sweetcorn Toolkit” Reinstating the PIDG (Pea Industry development Group):

- to improve pea quality and yield - soil fertility requirements- soil bourne diseases - reproductivity “triggers”- crop rotation- update and redistribute the “Making Peas Pay” Booklet in pdf and other electronic

formats Beans Pilot trials Growing a brighter future for carrots

PVNZ Key R & D Project - Growing a bright future for process carrots

The New Zealand juice and processing industries want to expand production to meet increasing demand for high-health carrot products. To support this vision, increased yields of high quality product and more efficient use of inputs are needed.

In 2010 the industry undertook a 1-year scoping study (SFF 10/154) to review current production practices used to grow process carrots in New Zealand. These were evaluated through case studies with grower discussion groups and gaps preventing further productivity, profitability and/or sustainability gains identified.

To address these gaps in 2013 PFR commenced a new 3-year SFF project supported by the MPI (Ministry for Primary Industries), Process Vegetables NZ, Juice Products NZ, Heinz-Watties and McCain Foods. The project “Growing a bright future for process carrots” was split into two key target areas:

Target 1: Increasing yield and quality through better crop establishment

Growers have often observed large differences between targeted and actual plant populations and spacing. These differences are often attributed to problems encountered during emergence and establishment and can adversely affect factory scheduling, yield and root size. In Year 1 activity focused on surveying current establishment outcomes. In Year 2 a trial was conducted at the Plant & Food Research farm at Lincoln to assess the effect of fine and rough soil bed tilth, new and worn coulter ribs, and fast and optimum planting speeds on establishment and productivity outcomes. The influence of planting depth was apparent in the result, and Year 3 trials were conducted in Hawke’s Bay and Canterbury to investigate this effect further. The aim was to identify good practice establishment guidelines for dissemination to growers.

Target 2: Improving nutrient use efficiency for yield and quality

For process carrots, few previous fertiliser studies are still relevant to current production situations and new cultivars. This means that in some cases, crop nutrient deficiencies can occur or fertilisers are not being used as profitably as they could be. Research in Year 1 focused on benchmarking existing nutrient management trends and identifying opportunities to improve yield and quality outcomes. In Years 2 and 3 these were tested and validated through field trials. The aim was to summarise the results in a series of resources to support profitable and efficient nutrient management practices by growers.


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The follow on from this project will be the production of a book in electronic format for Carrots, similar to the Sweetcorn Toolkit or Making Peas Pay book. We are already in the process of scoping this work and are looking to have it produced in the 2016/17 year.

RMA, Nutrient Budgeting and Farm Environment Plans

RMA issues once again this year are to the forefront. This is a time consuming activity, and a lot of the work involves correcting misconceptions by Regional Councils and Government Regulators and proving that growers are good guardians of the land. It is hard work.

The end result appears to be progressing towards full farm environmental plans for all farms including Water and Nutrient budgets, along with farm Biosecurity plans. These will all require auditing, and there are a number of options available. One of which is joining NZGAP which is run by Horticulture New Zealand. This option appears to be the least strenuous and most economical option at the stage.

Vegetable Research & Innovation Board

PVNZ is a funding contributor with David Hadfield (Chair of PVNZ) also being a Director on the V R & I Board. The core research is the focus on RMA, EPA and collective vegetable product group projects. There are a number of projects that affect all vegetable groups so the PVNZ R & D Committee and Processors are working very closely with the V R & I Board to provide scientific supporting evidence to defend our growers’ position.

The V R & I Board are progressing the development of the V R & I Research Strategy and have held discussions about the intention of the strategy. It was noted that the V R & I strategy provides an opportunity for the vegetable sectors to identify sector-wide issues and is a mechanism to develop a research programme to address these issues and in terms of leveraging government funding the collective vegetable industries should be looking to develop research programmes that stretch beyond ‘business as usual’. For example R&D initiatives on health and wellness could support changing of consumer preferences for vegetables through validated health claims. The value of this approach is that the vegetable sector is able to demonstrate value that is not solely export focused or economic.

The Board identified that there is a need to better understand these types of values in relation to the domestic vegetable industry and its intrinsic value to NZ Inc. Such information would assist the vegetable sector to make a stronger case to government for R&D funding (e.g. justification for CORE funded research through Plant and Food Research, or as a resource to support SFF or PGP applications).

A summary of current or completed V R & I research projects supported by Process Vegetables NZ:

Registration of Agrichemicals Future funding of minor crops and potential application for PGP funding Vegetable Industry Agrichemical Strategy Co-ordinator Herbicide Strategy Co-ordinator Vegetable R&D project catalogue Root zone reality – SFF and extension project Maximising the Value of Irrigation Don’t Muddy the Water Nitrogen Quicktest Monitoring Biosecurity Risk


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Projects that are currently in development are:

Water quality and use Vegetable wash down and waste water discharge Further ongoing Biosecurity Risk Monitoring as part of our GIA commitments Primary Growth Partnership proposal for pest management in Horticulture

EPA – Agrichemical Reassessment Program

Process Vegetables NZ along with a number of other product groups have successfully obtained funding from the MPI Sustainable Farming Fund (SFF) for a project titled “Registration of Sustainable Agrichemicals for Minor Crops”. This project was completed in 2015 and has been extremely successful with outcomes including label extensions for 11 agrichemicals and the establishment of an effective program involving growers, chemical companies and the regulator through which minor crops can gain registration of agrichemicals.

The horticultural product groups including Process Vegetables NZ have indicated interest in maintaining the impetus generated from the SFF project and to develop a wider ongoing minor use program. This work is ongoing and currently funded by the product groups. The aim is to incorporate this work into the Primary Growth Partnership proposal for pest management in Horticulture. This is an $8.7m project incorporating 22 groups including FAR, Zespri, Winegrowers and Potatoes to name a few and is being led by the vegetable sectors through the V R & I Board.

Finally

On behalf of the PVNZ Board I would like to congratulate PVNZ Director Hugh Ritchie on being elected to the Horticulture NZ Board and to thank staff at Horticulture NZ for their contribution and support to the PVNZ Board and growers during 2015/16.

David Hadfield Chairman – Process Vegetables New Zealand


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PVNZ - Annual Accounts 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2016

Summary of the financial performance for the year ending 31 March 2016 which should be read in conjunction with the full Financial Statement:

Key Points: (Refer Page 26)

Income:

1 Forecasted sales: for 2015/16 were $65m compared to an actual of $54m due to a mixed year for weather extremes and yield volumes leaving a shortfall of $11m.

2 Total income: $356k was $76k higher than the budget forecast of $280k but this includes $109k of research SFF funding income. When deducted a nett levy income of $247k is realised (compared to levy income only of $229k in the prior year 2014/15).

Expenses:

3 Research & Development: Expenses increased by $69k from $166k to $235k due to the review of the “Growing a Brighter Future for Processed Carrots” research project and remodelling the project and timing which incurred a revised budget of $106k from 35k. The total funding for this project has been offset by the SFF contribution of $165k of which $109k was paid in the 2015/16 year

4 PG Meetings & Travel: Expenses were $58k and although $3k more than budget they were $12k less than the prior year 2014/15.

5 Office & Communication: Expenses were down $12k from a budget of $97k to $85k, mostly due to the reduction in MAS (Market Access Solutionz) consultancy fees.

6 Total Expenses: $378k were $60k more than the forecast of $318k due to the increased R & D expense.

7 Surplus / Deficit: A deficit balance of $22k was $16k less than the forecasted deficit of $38k.

8 Reserves: Decreased by $6k from $407k in 2014/15 to $309k in 2015/16.


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PVNZ - Budget Forecast 1 April 2016 to 31 March 2017

Key Points: (Refer Page 26)

Income:

1 Sales Value: The forecast is for the sales value to increase from $54m to $63m compared to the declined value declared this year

2 Levy & other Income: The PVNZ levy forecast of $344k for 2016/17 includes $79k of other income. The nett Levy income is $265k and higher than the actual levy income of $234k for 2015/16.

Expenses:

3 Research & Development: Budget has decreased to $196k from $235k last year as the core cost of the Carrot project was covered in 2015/16 but does include several proposed projects from the PVNZ Research Strategy.

4 PG Meetings & Travel: Expenses have been forecast higher at $61k compared to $58k due to an anticipated higher attendance at the 2016 AGM & Conference.

5 Office & Communications: Expenses are $99k compared to the 2014/15 actual of $85,000. This is due to a partial lift in the salaries and wages of support staff and the inclusion of MAS consultancy for GIA activities.

6 Total Expenses: Are forecast to be less by $22k compared to last year from $378k to $356k.

7 Surplus / Deficit: Despite a decrease in expenses there is also a decrease in Income and therefore a deficit of - $12,000 is forecast which will be less than the actual deficit of $22k last year.

Note: Reserves will be at an estimated $378k.

On the limited levy we collect we cover a significant area of work in collaboration with other product groups, but our focus is always to get the best outcomes for the Process Vegetable Growers and our partners in producing the crop we sell.

David Hadfield Chairman – Process Vegetables NZ

John Seymour Business Manager – Process Vegetables NZ

3 August 2016


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Income/Expenditure 2015 ‐ 2016 and Budget Forecast 2016 ‐ 2017

2015 / 2016 Forecast 2015 / 2016 Actual 2016 / 2017

Forecast sales $65m Actual sales $54mForecast sales $63m

$ $ Levy & Other Income $143,000 130,000 Levy Product Group (0.22%) 139,000130,000 104,000 Levy R & D (0.20%) 126,000

7,000 13,000 Interest 6,0000 109,000 Other Income (SFF Research funding) 73,000

$280,000 $356,000 $344,000

$ $ Research & Development $18,000 22,000 V R & I Project Provison (10% of R & D levy) 18,00013,000 10,000 V R & I Manager & Admin 13,00092,000 202,000 R & D projects & new proposals 155,00043,000 1,000 Projects (GIA. EPA, RMA, etc) 10,000

$166,000 $235,000 $196,000

PG Meetings & travel Expenditure15,000 12,000 AGM & Conference 15,00015,000 15,000 Honoraria & Exec travel 16,00025,000 31,000 Product Group Meetings Travel & Fees 30,000

$55,000 $58,000 $61,000Office & communications

7,000 0 Consultancy / MAS 5,00023,000 23,000 Office Overheads 23,000

500 0 Postage 50013,000 12,000 NZ Grower magazine Contribution 13,000

2,500 0 Printing, stationery 2,5002,500 2,500 Capitation & DA Grants 2,5003,000 1,000 General Expenses 1,0001,000 2,000 Photocopying 1,000

43,000 43,000 Salaries & Wages (Office staff allocation) 49,0001,500 1,500 Telephone & Tolls 1,500

$97,000 $85,000 $99,000

$318,000 $378,000 $356,000-$38,000 -$22,000 Surplus / Deficit -$12,000$114,000 $223,903 General Reserves$293,000 $166,745 R & D Reserves$407,000 $390,648 Total Reserves Est $378,648

Process Vegetables NZIncome and expenditure Forecast 1 April 2016 - 31 March 2017

DRAFT


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Speaker Profiles


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Mike Bledsoe VIP Village Farms International, USA

Dr. Bledsoe’s background includes an under graduate degree from Florida Institute of Technology with him receiving his Masters and PH.D. from University of Florida in Entomology. He spent 22 years at Valent USA, in Research and Development, creating new products for Agriculture. While at Valent USA he established it Good Laboratory Programs (GLP) and established it GLP Department. He also started and managed, Program Management team, and their Worker Safety and Environmental Programs. He has been with Village Farms for 18 years and during this time he has had the opportunity to help change this industry. As of 2016 Mike is the Chair of the IR‐4 commodity Liaison Committee (CLC) and a voting member of the IR‐4 governing board. He worked with the IR‐4 Program and USEPA to develop agricultural products that could be used by the Greenhouse vegetable industry in the US and with the PMRA in Canada for Canadian greenhouses. He built the first Food Safety team and program in the US for the Hydroponic Greenhouse Vegetable Industry. Recently he and his team have developed with TraQtion/NSF the first database to assist in managing the requirement of both Buyers and the FDA for its FSMA and FSVP.

Andrew Barber Agrilink, New Zealand

Agrilink Director Andrew Barber has been involved in agricultural engineering consultancy for 20 years. A Winston Churchill Fellow, he has a BHort (tech) Hons from Massey University. Andrew has extensive experience in project managing complex multi‐stakeholder projects. Among his successes is the Franklin Sustainability Project, which was launched in response to soil erosion. This initiative by outdoor vegetable growers encompassed a range of sustainability issues and achieved excellent results not the least of which were engaged growers driving and developing their own solutions, and a satisfied council and local community. The project also received an MfE Green Ribbon Award in 2000.

Dr Erin O’Donoghue Plant and Food Research, New Zealand

Dr Erin O'Donoghue is a postharvest scientist based at Plant & Food Research's Food Industry Science Centre in Palmerston North and leads the research component of the 'Fresher by Sea' programme, which is jointly funded by TomatoesNZ and Vegetables New Zealand Ltd. During her 33‐year research career, she has worked as a scientist for MAFTech and Crop & Food Research. Her postharvest research interests include fruit, vegetables and flowers, with a particular emphasis on the way typical textures are established and change with ripening and senescence after harvesting. She has a BSc (Hons) in chemistry from Massey University and a PhD in postharvest biochemistry from the University of Florida.


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