The lab now tests only for residues in fruit, leaving post-harvest processors grappling with how to evaluate fruit quality.
In recent years Zespri has made much of the taste component being marketed and linked it to grower payments.
The taste incentive is the most significant incentive component of Zespri’s payment, accounting for 90% of incentive value.
The taste component can form a significant part of a SunGold grower’s income.
In 2017-18 the Taste Zespri component was $5.28 a tray and for Green $2.37.
Based on this year’s estimated harvest of 80 million SunGold and 70m trays of Green it could account for $590m or a third of total export value.
A Eurofins spokesman confirmed it is no longer testing for taste becausse of difficulties complying with the Primary Industry Ministry’s covid-19 protocols.
Industry sources maintain growers will still get expected market returns with the taste money allocated to total fruit payments rather than being credited to specific growers.
Those most likely to be out of pocket are growers hoping to capitalise on the KiwiStart early marketed fruit, which has already been sent.
Their fruit payment comprises a large component of taste money to compensate for early harvest compromising taste.
But one grower said removing the taste testing samples from post-harvest might smooth out fruit flow, with the sampling process often slowing down processing.
In an effort to streamline processes in light of covid-19 and the loss of the test, growers have been told there will be no payment for the poorest quality, small fruit.
Apata has told growers a pan-industry group has developed a simplified clearance test, comprising of brix, colour and seed.
One grower described the move as a back-to-the-future step. Brix was once used as a crude measure of taste.
Seeka chief executive Michael Franks said Eurofin’s decision has let the industry down.
Eurofins has had a challenging couple of years with the significant growth in SunGold plantings putting increased pressure on its resources.
The company’s start in kiwifruit testing in 2016 was blighted by a quad bike accident that killed an AgFirst employee in an orchard when AgFirst was in the process of selling the testing business to Eurofins.
