T&G Global has entered into a partnership with the New Zealand Superannuation Fund though its New Zealand rural investment manager, FarmRight, to help grow one of New Zealand’s best-returning premium export apples, Envy™.
The partnership sees T&G sell 40 hectares of Hawke’s Bay orchards (its Rosewood, Taylor and Trotter orchards) to NZ Super Fund, with T&G contracted to provide orchard services and all post-harvest, export and marketing services. This frees up capital for T&G to invest in Envy’s™ ambitious global growth strategy, whilst providing the government’s NZ Super Fund with returns to help fund the future superannuation costs of Kiwis.
T&G Chief Executive, Gareth Edgecombe, says partnering with the NZ Super Fund enables T&G to increase supply of its premium Envy™ apples to help meet growing global demand.
“Global consumer demand for Envy™ is projected to increase five-fold by 2030, which means we need to source an additional 10 million tray carton equivalents (TCEs) globally to meet the forecast 25 million TCEs that will be needed by then,” says Gareth.
“With the NZ Super Fund’s focus, through its manager FarmRight, on creating long term value by generating returns off the land, we can apply our world-class orcharding services and our global supply chain, marketing and sales expertise to deliver incredible apples to consumers, as well as strong grower returns.
“Envy™ is a great New Zealand horticultural success story. It’s a world-leading apple, harnessing incredible IP from our partners at Plant & Food Research. With its fantastic crisp crunch, perfectly balanced sweet flavour and bright red colour, consumers around the world actively seek it out.
“With Envy’s™ strong consumer preference, combined with the strength of the brand and its superior orcharding qualities, it means growers have the potential to make an attractive return on investment, once their orchards are at full maturity,” says Gareth.
FarmRight’s CEO, Jim Lee, says they are looking forward to working with T&G to further grow the value of Envy™.
“Envy™ is a high-quality apple, with big potential, especially in China, Vietnam, Thailand and USA. This global demand, combined with a strong track record of returns, makes it a solid investment. We’re really pleased to be partnering with the T&G team to help grow the brand, with the returns ultimately assisting the government meet the future cost of New Zealand’s superannuation, says Jim.
The transaction was settled on 19 November 2021.
