China to New Zealand and back again: The kiwi and global trade

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‍Globalization is a phenomenon that can be neatly symbolized by certain products, materials and goods.

If you wanted to pick a fruit that sums up what globalization means, you might just pick the kiwi fruit. Closely associated with New Zealand, this small hairy but juicy fruit is popular all over the world.

But did you know the kiwi fruit is originally from China? Its history tells a story of how overseas trade has developed in recent centuries, with 21st century trade ties bringing the fruit to our tables faster and fresher than ever before.

Kiwi fruit is full of nutrition, health and flavor, which has amassed a huge following in China. /VCG Photo

The kiwi fruit was first mentioned in China more than 2,800 years ago. Its name back then (and still today in China) was 猕猴桃 (mí hóu táo), which literally means "macaque peach."

Despite thousands of years of history, it wasn't until 1904 that the kiwi fruit came to international attention. That year, a teacher from New Zealand named Isabelle Frazer brought some “macaque peach” seeds home from China. From then on, the fruit grew in popularity, gained a new name and became closely associated with its new adopted homeland, New Zealand.

New Zealand remains the king of the kiwi when it comes to producing and exporting the fruit. In the decade between 2007 and 2017 it was the biggest source of kiwi exports in the world for nine years. Last year, the top three kiwi fruit exporting countries were New Zealand, Italy and Chile.

China is one of the top destinations of kiwi fruit exports. /VCG Photo‍

While the fruit is popular worldwide, China is one of the biggest consumers of the kiwi fruit, importing 1.5 million tons of the fruit in 2017, according to a study by IndexBox.

One of the biggest challenges for the kiwi fruit trade is maintaining freshness – there are long distances between major exporting countries like New Zealand and Chile and the biggest consumers, posing a challenge to the industry.

It used to be hard for kiwi fruit to stay fresh and healthy on the journey to China, but the rise of cold-chain logistics has changed that. /VCG Photo

Thanks to new advances in cold-chain logistics, the kiwi can travel further, faster and maintain its freshness.

In 2017, it would typically take 14 days to travel from New Zealand to China by sea.

However, just a year later, the time needed to transport thousands of tons of kiwi fruit from Tauranga Port in New Zealand to Shanghai was reduced to 11 days – a significant improvement in just a short span of time.

(Voiceover: Jeff Moody / Project Manager: Zhang Xiaohe)