KVH has been at Zespri OPC winter events distributing the new on-orchard guidelines and a winter flyer with advice for management of Psa and wider biosecurity over the coming months. The flyer can be downloaded here and main topics covered include:

-          Psa management

-          The importance of sourcing and tracing clean plant material

-          Unusual symptoms reminders

A review of the end of the high-risk season for stink bugs and fruit flies. 

Growers are reminded that unpicked kiwifruit must be removed from vines by 1 July.

Unpicked fruit can increase the amount of wild kiwifruit plants establishing in nearby areas of native bush or forestry. Unmanaged vines (including those with unpicked fruit) may also be a potential host for plant disease organisms.

After 1 July KVH will follow-up on reports of unpicked fruit with orchard owners and post-harvest companies. Read more here.

Around this time each year growers are trying to source kiwifruit plants at the last minute, which can be a challenging task as often many nurseries have sold out. Growers are advised to order plants a year in advance to prevent being caught in this situation.

KVH is aware of some nurseries that have plants remaining. Growers looking for plants, or other nurseries with plants remaining, can contact KVH and we can endeavour to connect the parties – please email info@kvh.org.nz or phone 0800 665 825.When sourcing plants, KVH Kiwifruit Plant Certification Scheme (KPCS) movement controls must be observed. Growers who are “holding” and retaining in an identified nursery situation grafted G3 plants - subject to the conditions outlined in the Zespri Nursery Holding Permit - need to be aware of KVH requirements around plant movements.

If the plants are not going to be used on the same piece of land that they are held on, please contact KVH to confirm the requirements for moving these plants.

Biosecurity has retained the number one ranking in KPMG’s annual Agribusiness Agenda priorities survey for the ninth consecutive year.

KPMG’s Head of Agribusiness, Ian Proudfoot said primary sector leaders had input into the report and noted they want to see higher priority placed on collaboration and cost-sharing to proactively manage biosecurity risk through the Government Industry Agreement (GIA) structure, indicating leaders are willing to invest their time in enhancing collaborative models that are working effectively.

Leaders also commented that biosecurity is an issue that should be a priority on the risk register of every organisation, yet most were prepared to discount the risk until they found themselves at the centre of an incursion.

“M Bovis has demonstrated how quickly an incursion can move from being a national, governmental issue to a localised and personal issue for those impacted, which highlights how important it is that every organisation has developed risk management plans for biosecurity,” noted KPMG.

The foul-smelling bugs threatening NZ wine
Hold your pinot noir a little closer tonight. If Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs (BMSB) establish themselves, New Zealand’s red wine could taste unpleasant. Tasting notes for New Zealand’s red wines could look very different said NZ Wine as the stink bugs could cause a loss in production as well as a serious quality issue.

Beware the devastating threat from BMSB
New video about the little bug that could be a disaster for all our growing industries, devastating New Zealand fruit exports. 

It takes all of us to protect what we've got but there are a few champions worth celebrating – could this be you or your organisation?

Have you been involved in a home, business/workplace, school or community group project that supported biosecurity in New Zealand? Has your mahi helped to increase Māori capability and capacity in the biosecurity system? Has your organisation developed new systems, technologies, or practices that focus on improving biosecurity? Are you involved in predator control or activities that are helping to protect biodiversity in Aotearoa?

If you or someone you know is doing great work to protect New Zealand against pests and diseases, it’s time to shine a light on their achievements. KVH won an award last year and it would be great to see the kiwifruit industry represented again!

Visit the This Is Us website to learn more about the award categories and how to enter. Be quick – entries close Wednesday 24 July 2019.  

Following the recent Grower Director Nominations there was one grower member vacancy for the KVH Board and one candidate, the incumbent Dermott Malley, standing for election.

A new guide from KVH that has been designed to help growers strengthen biosecurity plans has been flying off the shelves since we launched it at Fieldays.

On-orchard biosecurity is the responsibility of every person working on or visiting an orchard. High-profile pest and disease introductions over the last decade, including Psa, are reminders we must always be biosecurity aware.

The 5 step on-orchard biosecurity guidelines are a set of measures designed to protect a property from the entry and spread of pests and diseases and have been developed to provide guidance, help identify risks, and how to address them.

Use the guidelines to develop your orchard biosecurity plan, identify and prioritise biosecurity practices that are relevant to your orchard/property and that can be implemented every day.

The guide is free from KVH –  pick one up when you see us at meetings and events, view a copy online or email us for a posted copy.

The kiwifruit industry has a new video star in Campbell Wood, who features in the industry’s contribution to the national Ko Tatou This Is Us biosecurity campaign.

KVH and Zespri worked with Campbell to produce a short video for the This Is Us promotional library, championing the importance of biosecurity to business best practice and sustainability.

In the video, Campbell talks about his passion for growing kiwifruit and being on an orchard, and how important it is to orchard owners and managers like him to protect what we’ve got. That’s why biosecurity is so important - It’s about our people, our businesses, lifestyles and incomes he says.

“By actively being part of the biosecurity team and keeping an eye on what’s happening on our orchards, we can help make sure threats like fruit flies or soil diseases don’t sneak up on us.”

You can see the new video on the KVH YouTube channel here. KVH and Zespri will be using the video on social media, as will the Ko Tatou This Is Us campaign team.

The KVH Annual Update 2018/19  has been published.

This booklet shares KVH’s key activities and events over the last 12 months and profiles the kiwifruit industry’s biosecurity threats. Feature articles outline our leadership in many partnerships banding together to fight our biggest threats; the importance of building better traceability systems; and the contribution of the kiwifruit industry to the Auckland fruit fly responses.

The Annual Update also contains an overview of the ongoing research and development programme we have in place to better understand and manage the biosecurity challenges the industry is facing.

Read more and view a copy online or email us for a posted copy. The Annual Update will also be available at the upcoming AGM. 

At Fieldays this year we were talking about biosecurity and our industry’s most unwanted pests. The magnets we had to give away were popular – people have told us the they find the image of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB) good to keep nearby so that they know exactly what to look out for.

We still have BMSB magnets so please feel free to email us info@kvh.org.nz if you’d like some sent to you for work, home, staff, contractors or even a community event that you think would find them useful so that we can help spread the important message about knowing what to look out for and what to do if one of these bugs is found.