Tony Gibbs led Turners challenge to Zespri's kiwifruit export monopoly as he did to Enza's apple export monopoly a decade before. But his demise from the company seemed to see the challenge peter out.
Turners & Growers has given up on its challenge to the export monopoly of kiwifruit marketer Zespri. Turners claim the backdown is due to the kiwifruit disease crisis currently hitting the industry. Managing director Jeff Wesley says his company was going to appeal against last year’s High Court ruling which upheld the regulations giving Zespri its kiwifruit export monopoly. However, he says the challenge has been abandoned because the Psa disease crisis was putting kiwifruit growers and their families under severe pressure. “Psa will change the industry in a way that no-one could have imagined. Like all kiwifruit growers, Turners & Growers is hoping that a solution will be found quickly and that needs to be the focus for everyone in the industry at this time.” The independent fruit export company launched a string of publicity and legal actions in 2009 aimed at overturning Zespri’s monopoly right to export New Zealand kiwifruit to all countries except Australia. The industry has operated a single-desk system in export markets since 1987 when the Kiwifruit Marketing Board became responsible for marketing New Zealand’s crop. The majority of growers voted then to exclude numerous exporting firms because of a perception they were undercutting each other in overseas markets and consequently reducing orchard returns. Zespri International won its single desk exporting status in 1999 when the kiwifruit industry was restructured. Under legislation sought by growers only Zespri or those exporters with a collaborative contract can legally sell kiwifruit in overseas markets other than Australia. The raid on Zespri’s export monopoly was led by Turners former chairman Tony Gibbs who had fronted the company’s similar challenge to Enza’s apple export monopoly a decade or so earlier. “I believe the time has come to challenge this outdated monopoly. Offshore retailers are crying out for alternatives and now that Turners & Growers has its own green, gold and red varieties we are in a position to become, once again, a major force in the kiwifruit industry.” Gibbs was at the helm of Guinness Peat Group (GPG) when it staged a corporate raid on the grower-controlled Enza company – which had succeeded the Apple and Pear Marketing Board –and gained control of Enza assets and the brand was taken over by its subsidiary Turners. This proved to be a long and bitter battle, but one the cantankerous Gibbs seemed to thrive on. However, T&Gs battle to challenge Zespri’s export monopoly seemed to run out of puff when Gibbs was dropped from GPG – after a long and grueling battle with his former ally Sir Ron Brierley – over the future direction of the corporate raider. It seems the loss of Gibbs from Turners – and his passionate dislike for industry body monopolies – has seen the company lose its desire, in the face of mounting criticism from growers, to break Zespri’s export monopoly. Turners challenge has been most unpopular with kiwifruit growers from the get-go and its decision to quit due to Psa seems like a convenient – and handy – excuse for the company to save face and backdown.