Cultivating a Sustainable Future through Collaboration

Through this article, Jiunn Shih, Chief Marketing, Innovation & Sustainability Officer at Zespri International, addresses the paradoxes in the global food system and Zespri's sustainability progress. Highlighting issues like undernourishment, farmer poverty and agricultural emissions, Shih emphasizes the need for innovation and collaboration. He details Zespri's achievements in reducing emissions, increasing recyclable packaging and promoting healthy eating. Introducing ZAG, the Zespri Innovation Fund, Shih calls for partnerships to drive sustainable agriculture and technological advancements, stressing the importance of collective action for a resilient and thriving food system.

The food system as we know it today is riddled with paradoxes. Food is supposed to provide good nourishment to people, yet 462 million people worldwide are undernourished and almost 2 billion are obese. Over 80 percent of the world’s 570 million farms are smallholdings—farms that are less than two hectares in size—roducing a third of the food that the world eats, yet most of them live below the poverty line, barely affording to feed their families. Terrestrial vegetation is one of the most important carbon sinks in the world, yet agriculture is responsible for almost a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions.

As an industry, we have made progress in reducing our carbon footprint, adopting more sustainable practices throughout the supply chain and ensuring that the people who grow our food are well taken care of. However, much more can be done to accelerate the development and adoption of solutions that can catalyse positive change for our growers, the environment and the food we produce. It is our responsibility to push the boundaries of innovation, forge stronger collaborations and continuously strive for practices that not only sustain but regenerate our natural resources. By doing so, we can create a resilient food system that supports thriving communities and a healthier planet for future generations.

As one of the world’s leading fruit brands working with over 4,000 growers to bring six billion kiwifruits to consumers globally, Zespri’s purpose is to help people, communities and the environment thrive to the goodness of kiwifruit. We have made good progress against our sustainability commitments:

● As of 2022, 88 percent of our packaging is recyclable, compostable or reusable, against our 100 percent target by 2025.

● Our emissions last season were reduced by almost half, from 8,600 tCO2-e in 2020 to 4,700 tCO2-e in 2023.

● We have now created more than 5 billion healthy eating occasions against our target of 6 billion by 2025.

"Time is of the essence and collaboration is our most powerful tool... Together, let us shape a sustainable future, building a thriving world for generations to come."

Despite the strides we've made, we are still far from where we should be. We recognise that we have a key role to play, but our ambitions are greater than our resources. Therefore, we seek partners and collaborators to help solve challenges impacting our fruit and the well-being of people, communities, and the environment.

ZAG: Unlocking The Exponential Power of Collaboration

The agriculture industry is unique in that we are built on the power of collaboration. Instead of fighting against each other, we fight together to make the planet better and solve the challenges that we all face as an industry. We share knowledge, learnings and best practices with one another, as we understand that we share common objectives, no matter what crops we grow—to grow better with less and to ensure a sustainable future for our land, our communities and our food systems.

In November 2023, we introduced ZAG, the Zespri Innovation Fund, allocating US$2 million annually to propel future innovation and strategic partnerships. We seek forward-thinking visionaries, disruptors, dreamers and darers to help us better innovate in sustainable agriculture, technology, automation, packaging, supply chain, logistics and industry education.

Embracing the Māori proverb, 'Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini' (My strength is not as an individual but as a collective), we acknowledge the urgency of climate action. Zespri is dedicated to sustainability and invites bold innovators with ground-breaking ideas to collaborate to shape a better world.

Time is of the essence and collaboration is our most powerful tool. The challenges we face transcend individual capabilities, necessitating a collective effort. By joining hands and sharing knowledge, we can unlock the exponential power of collaboration, fostering a resilient and thriving agribusiness that sustains not only the present but also the generations to come. Together, let us shape a sustainable future, building a thriving world for generations to come.