Kiwifruit marketer Zespri says the outbreak of vine disease PSA in New Zealand will have a negligible impact on exporting the fruit this season.
PSA was first found three months ago and has now been confirmed on 147 orchards.
All kiwifruit growing areas except Northland are affected.
Twenty-nine hectares of vines have been cleared on orchards in the Te Puke area as part of attempts to control the disease.
Zespri chief executive Lain Jager, who is at the Fruit Logistica trade fair in Berlin, says feedback at the expo indicates the PSA outbreak will not cause any supply or market access problems for New Zealand.
He says the disease is already widely established in other parts of the world and and less than 2% of orchards in New Zealand have been affected.
