media release
January 28, 2020
A union of fresh produce industry forces from across the country secured the master license and rights to the Kanzi ™ Apple brand in Australia from a new conglomerate of five leading fruit producers, including The N&A Group (NSW), 9 Mile Fresh (Tynong), VIC), Newton Orchards (Manjimup, WA), Ceravolo Orchards and Flavells Fruit Sales (both Adelaide Hills, SA) as partners in the new operational unit Horticulture Brand Management Australia Pty Ltd (HBMA).
HBMA was founded in Australia in the second half of 2019 with the company's main function as the management of the Kanzi ™ brand. In addition, HBMA will also manage the launch and marketing of other new fruit varieties on the Australian market, including Celina Pear, and several as yet unidentified varieties. HBMA has also been hired as the exclusive agent for Air Water Global Pty Ltd's innovative agricultural technology products, namely the Airofresh Intl ™ and AWG Aqua Smart ™ products.
The Kanzi ™ brand will remain in experienced hands in the future, since all five HBMA partners have been vertically integrated producers, packers and marketers for the Kanzi Marketing Group since the apple was launched on the Australian market almost 10 years ago. The combined total production of Kanzi ™ apples accounts for approximately 35% of the total Kanzi ™ harvest, with over 70% of the total Kanzi ™ production being marketed through the Group's sales channels.
HBMA's partners are excited about the future of the Kanzi ™ brand in Australia when Elisa King, previously marketing director at Hort Innovation, has been appointed general manager of the company. Elisa had more than 20 years of marketing experience, many of them in the fresh produce industry, before joining HBMA.
The master license and management of the Kanzi ™ brand in Australia were previously held by Des Muir from Giston Consulting, and HBMA would like to take this opportunity to thank Des for 14 years of service. "HBMA partners see this as an exciting opportunity to further expand the popular Kanzi ™ brand in Australia and to develop a successful launch platform for the other new varieties under our leadership," says Elisa.
Source: Horticulture Brand Management Australia Pty Ltd.
