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Covid-19 coronavirus: Orchardists plead for Pacific Island travel bubble 6 Apr, 2021 08:46 PM 5 minutes to read Travel bubble - orchardists plead with Govt for Pacific Island bubble. Video / Hawke s Bay Today Orchardists say more than $600m is set to be lost to from regional economies like Hawke s Bay s as a result of the massive shortage of workers to pick fruit. The region s orchardists, exporters and growers reliant on seasonal work say they ve worked through the season with anxiety and desperation beyond belief . And they are calling on the Government to open a travel bubble with the Pacific islands to allow the free flow of what would normally be up to 14,410 workers arriving as part of the recognised seasonal employer scheme, in time for the 2022 season. ....
SUPPLIED Orchardist Bruce Mitchell left six blocks of royal gala apples on the trees this season due to a lack of pickers. “I was desperate and did everything I could to find people to harvest the apples, but on the day, we started, I was expecting 20 pickers and only two people turned up, so we physically couldn’t pick 40 per cent of the gala crop.” Mitchell is among hundreds of orchardists and exporters who have left export quality fruit on the trees or compromised quality with fruit not picked at the optimal time. “We can’t continue to spend money on keeping our business alive without a guarantee of labour in the future. It’s just not possible,” Mitchell said. ....
Desperate pleas for a government plan to allow Pacific Island seasonal workers to return As the labour shortage across New Zealand hits crisis point as fruit harvesting is at its peak – Exporters, Growers, Food Companies and industry leaders make a desperate plea to Government for a plan to allow Pacific Island seasonal workers to return later this year. At a media conference in Hawke’s Bay, they called on the Government and Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi, for a plan that would allow more Pacific Island workers into the country to avoid the devastating impact which is happening now. Due to the shortage of labour, thousands of tonnes of fruit has been left on trees and the apple industry alone is already predicting losses upwards of $600 million to provincial New Zealand economies as the national crop forecasts are 14% down on 2020. ....
Mike Hosking and Jacinda Ardern: Newstalk ZB host backtracks on not having PM on show nzherald.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from nzherald.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
'Pacific bubble' being considered, but won't bring seasonal worker numbers back to pre-Covid-19 level — Faafoi stuff.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from stuff.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.