Innovation
Producing innovative new kiwifruit cultivars by integrating science, digital tools, genomics, sustainable growing practices and commercial expertise.
Where we began…
Mary Isabel Fraser brought a handful of fruit to New Zealand from Yichang, China in 1904. Local nurserymen later produced plants from the seeds of those fruit. In 1925, Hayward Wright, a nurseryman from Auckland, bred a green-fleshed type now known as the ‘Hayward’ cultivar. This became the first kiwifruit to be traded internationally and remains the most important cultivar globally today.
What is next?
KBC is here to develop the next generation of kiwifruit for consumers. Using cutting-edge technology and new breeding techniques, KBC’s mission is to accelerate the development of emerging kiwifruit cultivars while supporting good health, helping local economies, and ensuring better environmental outcomes.
Our science in key areas include elite cultivar development, technology application, sustainable production and breeding systems – enabling the generation of new varieties of kiwifruit that earn a premium in international markets, while our research into food science and the consumer drives the design and development of fruit attributes that offer benefits to human health and wellbeing.
For the growers, we’re looking for how we can increase the yield for them, how we can generate cultivars that require fewer chemical inputs. And for the supply chain, how can we create new and hardier cultivars, and so survive that movement from here in New Zealand over to the markets, generally the northern hemisphere.
Careers at KBC
Are you interested in working together to creatively innovate for a better future?