New Zealand can thank Miss Isabel Fraser for its thriving kiwifruit industry. More than a century ago in 1904, the Wanganui teacher returned from a trip to China with some very special black seeds. Horticulturist, Alexander Allison sprouted those seeds and in doing so, started the beginnings of growing kiwifruit in New Zealand.
The person responsible for the start of ZESPRI® Kiwifruit however, is Hayward Wright and his exceptional green thumb. In 1928, with the Bay of Plenty’s rich volcanic soils and mild climate, Hayward’s first vines grew easily, and ever since that point, the “Hayward” cultivar has been grown and exported all over the world forming the Kiwifruit Industry as we know it today.
The first exports made by pioneering kiwifruit growers were in 1952, to England. Though its original name was “Yang Tao” or the “Chinese Gooseberry,” proud Kiwis wanted to name the fruit in recognition of New Zealand’s national symbol – the special brown-feathered Kiwi; thus the origin of the name ‘Kiwifruit’.
In the years following, the Industry expanded with entrepreneurial kiwifruit growers banding together to market their fruit overseas. In the 1970's, the Kiwifruit Marketing Board was formed which later evolved to become ZESPRI International Limited in 1997, a global marketing organisation. It was also at this time that the ZESPRI® Kiwifruit brand was born - with a commitment to grow and sell the best kiwifruit, which remains unchanged today.
Zespri International now is the biggest Kiwi Friut export company in New Zealand.
