Motueka kiwifruit growers boost automation amid labour woes

Two Motueka kiwifruit growers are increasing automation in their packhouses in response to labour shortages and changing export requirements. Their investment comes as New Zealand kiwifruit export revenue is forecast to rise to NZD $4.8 billion.

Thomas Brothers and Inglis Packers are among the established family operators in the upper South Island adapting their post-harvest systems after recent climatic shocks and several years of tighter seasonal labour supply. Both say automation now handles most of their packing volumes, with further changes under consideration in pallet stacking and other labour-intensive tasks.

The wider backdrop for the sector is stronger export earnings. The Ministry for Primary Industries said in its June 2026 Situation and Outlook for Primary Industries report that horticulture export revenue was expected to increase 7 per cent to NZD $9.5 billion in the year to 30 June 2026, while kiwifruit export revenue was expected to climb 16 per cent to NZD $4.8 billion.

That growth has come despite disruption in Nelson-Tasman, where two major floods caused serious damage in the Motueka Valley in 2025. Growers in the region have also faced higher input costs, including fuel, plastics and shipping.

Thomas Brothers, a sixth-generation family business, grows about 84 hectares of kiwifruit for Zespri and packed nearly two million trays of Green, SunGold and RubyRed fruit over the past year. The business also grows apples, pears and cherries, and packs fruit for other local growers.

Paul Thomas said cost volatility remained a concern even as freight pressures had eased.

"We've had increasing costs, particularly this year, with less stability around fuel, plastic and oil derivatives. There's also risk around supply, freight and shipping, but that has eased off and we've come through our harvest and the bulk of the shipping now," Thomas said.

The business has also had to manage weather risk closely. Thomas said Motueka benefited from winter chill, but frost remained a threat at sensitive points in the growing cycle.

"We have overhead irrigation, so we literally turn the water on, and instead of frost settling, we make it rain," he said.

Packhouse shift

Thomas Brothers began working with MAF NZ in 2022 to retrofit an older grader and install automated box fillers. It later added equipment for bag inserting, conveying and labelling, with more automation introduced in 2025.

Thomas said those changes had materially altered the labour profile of the operation.

"Depending on the variety, between 80 and 95 per cent of fruit is packed through automation. It's increased our capacity and also de-risked the business, because we're in a rural area without a large population, and it's seasonal work, so staffing was always a challenge. The automation has improved that situation," he said.

Inglis Packers has followed a similar path. Peter Inglis planted his first kiwifruit vines with his father, Peter Inglis Senior, in 1977, and the family built its packhouse in 1984. After the latest harvest, the business packed 1.5 million trays of Class 1 gold and green fruit, along with Class 2 fruit for Australia and a smaller domestic programme.

At present, Inglis Packers carries out 80 per cent of packing through MAF Roda automation and another 10 per cent on K1 single-layer tray automation, leaving the remaining 10 per cent to manual packing.

That balance can change according to customer and market requirements.

"It depends on the pack plans and Zespri changes within those plans around markets, pack type, taste, size and pests. The goalposts are moving all the time, and we can respond by moving from bulk to layered packing," Inglis said.

Labour pressure

For both growers, the pandemic period reinforced the risks tied to seasonal labour availability. Automation reduced reliance on a workforce that can be difficult to secure in rural regions, especially during peak harvest and packing periods.

The next area under review is pallet stacking, where workers still manually lift large volumes of cartons onto pallets. Both businesses see that task as physically demanding and a likely candidate for robotics.

Inglis said returns in the sector were holding up.

"Kiwifruit growers generally should be happy with the way things are going - returns are reasonably stable," he said.

He also pointed to the importance of year-round market presence for New Zealand fruit, arguing that maintaining shelf space remained critical as overseas rivals improved.

"It's extremely important that we have our New Zealand product on the shelf 12 months a year. Our competition in the market is getting much smarter at what they do and how they do it, so keeping our product on the shelf 365 days a year stops the competition from taking our shelf space. Provided our quality remains as it is, that should stay intact. The most important issue looking ahead for Zespri is to maintain its quality product," Inglis said.

India focus

Both growers also see potential in India as trade conditions improve and demand broadens beyond a small group of destinations.

"It's great. It's all good for New Zealand; I don't think we need to be reliant on any one particular market. Things are changing globally in favour of a good, healthy product that people want. Kiwifruit travels well, depending entirely on how it's grown, when it is harvested, and how it is then processed and cool-stored," Inglis said.

Thomas said India was already becoming more important for apples and expected that to translate into stronger demand more broadly for New Zealand horticulture.

"From what I've seen in apples, India will probably be our second-largest market this year. It's obviously a massive market, and we're already seeing growth there due to the impending FTA and removal of tariffs. Customers in India are looking to form relationships, particularly with New Zealand suppliers, knowing that volumes will increase when the tariffs come off," he said.