WELCOME FROM THE ORGANISING COMMITTEE
The Organising Committee, supported by our sponsors, has great pleasure in inviting you to participate in the 6th International Kiwifruit Symposium. It is the second time that such a symposium has been held in New Zealand, the first time being in 1991. That symposium was very well attended and successful and the Organising Committee is confidant that kiwi2006 will be equally interesting and successful.
Since 1991, there have been many developments in the kiwifruit industries throughout the world in large part as a result of good research. There are new commercial cultivars, with yet more to come, to supplement the still globally dominant Hayward cultivar. These new cultivars offer consumers, including new kiwifruit consumers, different eating experiences that will add excitement to, and will grow, the global kiwifruit category, which remains small compared to many other fruits.
In the orchard, practices for the control of pests and diseases and for irrigation and fertilizer management are continuing to change in the drive to manage efficiently resources for more environmentally sustainable production systems. New techniques for vine management are being developed to improve the eating quality of the fruit as well as to increase the quantity of fruit that growers can produce from their vines.
Consumers are increasingly interested in eating healthily and there has been valuable research to demonstrate the health benefits of regular kiwifruit consumption.
Kiwi2006 offers the opportunity for researchers, growers and industry participants from around the world to present papers at the Symposium, as well as to meet to discuss issues and exchange ideas. We want to show you our great orchards and post-harvest facilities.
There will be a pre-Symposium tour that will provide the opportunity to visit a number of kiwifruit and other fruit orchards, to see post-harvest facilities and to enjoy the delights of New Zealand, the countryside, the beaches and the food and wine.
We look forward to you joining us in Rotorua, New Zealand for kiwi2006.
Bob
Martin
Chair
