Zespri International, a New Zealand-based marketer of kiwifruit, has launched two varieties of the fruit in India, Zespri Green and Zespri Gold. However, only Zespri Green will be available here from May till September. Zespri Gold, its recent addition to the kiwifruit family, will come later. The kiwifruit company will not only do an off-season sale in India (as kiwifruit in New Zealand is grown from December to April), it is also looking to tap the marriage season here when exotic fruits are part of wedding gifts.
In a market that’s mostly dominated by home-grown mangoes, oranges, watermelon, pomegranate and so on, who will buy kiwifruit? But Zespri is hopeful that it will score high with its nutritional value, easy-to-use packaging, and affordable prices (Rs 40 for a two-piece tray). Zespri International (Asia) Regional Market Manager Daniel Matheison says: “The Zespri New Zealand kiwifruit has two qualities. One, it has vitamin C, potassium, folic acid, vitamin E, dietary fibre, carotenoids and other antioxidants; with less fat, it’s a superfood for an Indian consumer’s daily diet. Two, the packaging trays will help the consumer to learn how to cut a fruit hygienically with the ‘spife’, a Zespri invention, that combines a spoon and a knife to cut and scoop out the fruit.”
Some experts also agree that the domestic demand for fresh fruits in India has been on the increase with rising incomes, population growth and increased health consciousness among consumers. KPMG Advisory Services Manager Anand Ramanathan says, “The import market in India is just getting started up to reach about $100 million (Rs 470 crore). Fruit imports mostly started with bigger organised retail chains in urban areas. Now, more and more retail and grocery stores including local vendors want to stock a wider variety of fruits to attract customers.”
The Indian marriage season also gives rise to demand for kiwifruit. “The majority of kiwifruit is sold during the wedding season in India. We figured that out during our pre-launch market research,” says Matheison. Zespri is targeting 40 per cent of the 800,000 trays (of 3.5 kg each) of kiwifruit consumed every year in India. While Italian kiwifruit is available during March and April in India, kiwifruits from Chile arrive from August to September. There are some local kiwifruit players who grow around 15,000 trays in Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. As most of these supplies are seasonal, Zespri kiwifruit will be available for a longer period to the Indian consumer.
Zespri has lined up some below-the-line activities to promote its kiwifruit. Even though the complete plan is not yet ready, Matheison discusses the first two BTL initiatives that will take shape from this month. “It will educate the consumers through sampling programmes about kiwifruit when they visit supermarkets like Hypercity, Reliance Retail, Godrej Nature’s Basket, Spencers and More in Delhi and Mumbai. Another BTL promotion will be school contact programmes where 25 to 30 schools will be identified in Mumbai and Delhi (Zespri is focusing on these two metros),” says he. Zespri will hold quiz competitions for school children as well as their parents from July this year.
India is yet to get its cold chain in place. But Zespri has partnered with its four distributors in India — IGI International, Suri Agro Fresh, Yupa International and DJ Exports — who have their own cold chains throughout India.
Does Zespri plan to grow kiwifruits in India? “The company does not have any plans to open manufacturing units in India as of now. We will evaluate the kiwifruit-growing conditions here, and potential partnerships in India,” adds Matheison.
