Brand's health focus bears fruit

As Chinese living standards rise, consumers are increasingly prioritizing high-quality, healthy and balanced diets over mere food availability. Zespri, a grower-owned cooperative and a global exporter of premium New Zealand kiwifruit, is set to further enhance its commitment to supporting the health management practices of Chinese consumers.

According to Jiunn Shih, global chief marketing, innovation and sustainability officer at Zespri, the company will continue to increase the supply of its quality kiwifruit in China, with the aim of empowering local consumers to address nutritional challenges such as "hidden hunger "with the fruit, which has a low glycemic index and high nutrient content. Hidden hunger is a condition where a person appears to be well-fed but is actually suffering from nutritional imbalances or deficiencies in micro-nutrients. This can lead to symptoms of "nutritional hollowing", such as difficulty staying alert at work, feeling fatigued outdoors, or becoming drowsy after meals. This year, to educate consumers and tackle hidden hunger, Zespri launched a series of activities. These include setting up nutrition recharge stations to engage the public, partnering with Meituan for drone deliveries of kiwifruit with meals, and distributing kiwifruit to office workers in CBD buildings. These efforts aim to guide the public in paying attention to nutrient intake especially by consuming more nutrient-dense fruit, and avoid becoming "nutritionally hollow".

"We absolutely want to make Zespri the first brand that comes to mind for Chinese consumers when they think of healthy foods," said Shih. "Zespri will continue to uphold the principle of 'In China, For China', contributing more to the Healthy China 2030 Initiative and bringing high-quality nutritious fruits to Chinese consumers. We have set a goal to double business in China, aiming to exceed 60 million standard retail boxes by 2028."

In 2024, Zespri recorded sales revenue of more than 1.1 billion New Zealand dollars ($648.23 million) in the Chinese market. Its three varieties of kiwifruit, including the newly introduced RubyRed Kiwifruit, have reached more than 30 million Chinese households in 72 major cities through more than 57,000 distribution outlets.

In the years ahead, Zespri plans to expand its reach to new regions in China by strengthening cooperation with like-minded ecosystem partners such as the retail chains Pagoda and Freshippo. Partnerships will also be more closely tied with online food delivery service providers such as Meituan and seek to offer consumers easier access to Zespri kiwifruit.

Alongside expanding its channels, Zespri will continue its partnerships with official institutions such as the Chinese Nutrition Society and the Chinese Association for Student Nutrition & Health Promotion to promote healthy eating habits among various demographics, for instance, students and office workers.

According to Shih, in 2023, Zespri China forged an alliance with the Chinese Association for Student Nutrition & Health Promotion, leading to the development of multiple standardized nutrition education programs for children. These programs in China, initiated globally in countries such as Japan and Spain since 2006 as part of Zespri's effort to support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, have empowered more than 5,000 Chinese nutrition educators and influenced more than 1 million students across 1,300 schools and 300 communities.

In March, Zespri, with its corporate vision to "help people, communities, and the environment around the world thrive through the goodness of kiwifruit", became the official partner of UNESCO's World Engineering Day for Sustainable Development, a recognition for its long-term contribution to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Zespri inaugurated a low-carbon biofuel-powered charter ship in China on March 26, heralding the commencement of its 2025 Season in the region since entering in 1999. This vessel not only symbolizes Zespri's commitment to sustainability but also underscores its efforts to position China as a leading example in this regard, according to Shih.

"Our priority lies in this market. China represents our largest, most critical, and rapidly expanding market. We are fully dedicated to it. Therefore, our objective is to provide nothing short of excellence to the Chinese market," said Shih.

While the global economic slowdown poses challenges, Shih said Zespri remains positive about long-term growth in the Chinese market.

"The Chinese market holds immense consumption potential and growth momentum. The large population, rapidly expanding middle and high-end consumer groups and continuously upgrading consumption structure provide us with vast market opportunities. We are very confident about the potential of this market in the long term," said Shih.