Year 12 Innovative Horticulture and Business Studies students travelled to Te Puke for a day this month.

Trevelyan's  the largest single-site kiwifruit and avocado packhouse in New Zealand. A key focus of Trevelyan’s is sustainability – economically, socially and environmentally, and that is what our students went to see in action on a tour and a talk. The packhouse was in full swing processing Sungold.

At the Kiwifruit Breeding Centre at Plant and Food Research students learned about breeding new plant cultivars and then got to see and taste a variety of different kiwifruit from the "plant library" vines which are used in the breeding process. The students heard about what growers and consumers want in kiwifruit and in groups designed some new cultivars on paper, considering size, appearance, taste, texture and much more.

Students also gained a good insight into different careers in the horticultural industry.

A big thank you to Trevelyan's and Plant and Food Research.