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Contractors

Contractors

movement of machinery, equipment and tools, personnel, and kiwifruit plant material to orchards where Psa is not detected, and to the South Island, is strictly prohibited or restricted.

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Contractors

Kiwifruit orchard contractors are considered high-risk because they routinely move machinery, equipment and tools, personal effects, kiwifruit plant material, and/or compost into, within and between orchards.

Growers should have confidence that their contractors are not adding additional risk to their orchards by moving new pests and diseases around the industry through contaminated tools and machinery. Therefore, the Pathway Plan requires kiwifruit contractors to have a biosecurity plan that identifies the potential risks they bring, and steps taken to manage these risks.

KVH recognises that risk will differ depending on the activities undertaken. The outcome sought is a plan that includes biosecurity hygiene practices and staff awareness and training programmes that are appropriate to the level of risk they pose. KVH also recognises that the kiwifruit industry already has existing systems in place and where possible we seek to incorporate our requirements into these to keep things simple and efficient for all involved.


Contractors

Contractors who are part of the Zespri Gap/Compliance Assessment Verification (CAV) will have a biosecurity plan included as part of their CAV requirements, and this will be audited as part of their existing CAV audit.

There is a CAV contractor list available on the Zespri website.

Contractors who are not currently required to hold a Zespri CAV need to complete a Non-CAV Contractors Biosecurity Plan and present it to growers (much as a CAV is currently). This form is available below as a PDF and as a Word version so that you can adapt it to suit your needs.

Traceability of any plant material is critical so contractors such as grafters and pollen applicators, who are on multiple orchards, need to ensure they have records of source and destination orchards for all plant material they supply. Traceability records must be maintained so that in the event of an incursion a contractor can supply information about the orchards they and their staff have visited over any nominated time period.

  • Non-CAV Contractors Biosecurity Plan (Word) - for use if you prefer to type into a document rather than handwrite. You may also choose to adapt this template to suit your needs, and include other requirements, such as Covid-19 protocols for example.

Growers

Growers need to ensure the contractors who come on to their orchards have evidence that they either hold a current Zespri CAV or have completed a Non-CAV Contractors Biosecurity Plan.

Template plans for contractors are provided above and are adaptable to suit the biosecurity risks identified. You/your contractors may also wish to adapt a template to include other requirements, such as Covid-19 protocols for example.

Growers then need to ensure biosecurity risks posed by contractors, their people and equipment, are appropriately managed.


orchard hygiene posters

Orchard biosecurity poster guides are available to view and download below in several different languages.


additional information

SEEN SOMETHING UNUSUAL?

KVH investigates reports of unusual symptoms to identify and manage any biosecurity risks.

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LATEST NEWS

23 Apr 2025

Stopping our most unwanted

A reminder the latest fruit fly and Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB) risk updates are always available on the KVH website. These updates include the latest detection and surveillance information, including our industry-led activities, and are produced every month.

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23 Apr 2025

Listen to the latest news

We have a new Snapshot podcast online, where we chat with Ryan, Chief Quarantine Officer for the Ministry for Primary Industries, about the work his teams do across biosecurity. Ryan manages the Tauranga, Hamilton, and Northland regions – there are biosecurity teams in all three regions – and in the chat we focus on the way they manage cruise ships, transitional facilities, and various partnerships that they have with KVH and the kiwifruit industry. The Snapshot podcasts are free and available now on SoundCloud and Apple iTunes.

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23 Apr 2025

Interactive surveillance maps: finding pests and diseases early

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) is always looking for pests and diseases that might have arrived from overseas. Finding them early is vital for successful biosecurity responses. The online and interactive Atlas of biosecurity surveillance explains more about the what, where and why of our nation’s surveillance programmes, including fruit flies, one of our industry’s “most unwanted”. There are 13 targeted programmes, focusing on specific pests, diseases and biosecurity risks. You can interact with such tools as surveillance maps, showing locations of trap sites, and see latest data for investigations by MPI teams, by region. General surveillance is also important - that is harnessing those who are out on our orchards, to contribute to gathering and reporting information around the presence of potentially new and unwanted threats. If you’ve seen an unusual pest or disease symptom, make a report by filling in our online form and we will be in touch.

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