Pukekohe Grower Update - Jivan Produce

The Pukekohe region is known for its onions, and we’re delighted that Bharat Jivan from Jivan Produce took some time recently to share his end of the season update with Onions NZ. Jivan Produce is a family run business in the South Auckland region of Pukekohe. Jivan Produce grows a number of vegetables including potatoes, onions, lettuce, broccoli and pumpkins.

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Much like the South Island, Pukekohe has experienced a cooler season in 2024/25. The success story this season though has been the more robust disease control strategy to keep the Stemphylium leaf blight in check.

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Growing conditions

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Pukekohe onion growers have had favourable growing conditions throughout 2024 and into 2025, with no significant adverse weather events. Although northern regions of New Zealand experienced cooler summer temperatures, crops have looked healthy right up to the point of lifting at harvest time. 

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Crop disease mitigation

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The cooler temperatures this growing season and having a more robust strategy in place has helped to keep common diseases such as Stemphylium leaf blight at bay. This season, regular crop checks have reported onion varieties looking healthy right up to the point of lifting at harvest time. 

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Onion Harvest

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Harvesting has been successful to date, with local onion crops having good yields and exceptional quality. Thankfully, a dry summer ensured a productive harvest, with minimal downtime. This always means a more cost efficient harvest period, and store sheds quickly filling up with quality onion product ready for export.

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Onion Quality

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Favourable weather conditions and good disease control all contribute to a quality onion product. This season has had no significant impacts in the Pukekohe region, ensuring that a steady volume of quality New Zealand grown onions is now stored onsite and ready to export.

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In recent years, the onion sector has had more of a focus on disease prevention and management. Onions New Zealand has helped to secure world-leading experts in their field to educate New Zealand growers about the latest in disease prevention and mitigation. Tackling diseases like Stemphylium leaf blight ensure that less manual interventions are needed, a better quality crop and more consistent supply.