United Fresh New Zealand and its award-winning team of women aim to use the International Women’s Day platform to celebrate the imperative roles women working within the industry play.
Secondly, to encourage others to join the fresh produce industry.
Carmel Ireland, the 5+ A Day Charitable Trust Project Manager, explained that women’s market power inside and outside the horticulture industry should not be underestimated.
“Just from a retail perspective, women are still the primary decision-makers when it comes to the nutrition choices that whānau make,” stated Ireland.
“Women within the industry must take leading roles to ensure that we’re meeting the needs of those consumers to put fresh, affordable and healthy food on the table each day.”
The team at United Fresh have been awarded the Primary Industries NZ Summit Team Award for delivering their tremendous effort in providing 300,000 boxes of fresh fruit and vegetables to families and communities during the COVID-19 lockdown.
General Manager at United Fresh, Paula Dudley, described their receiving of the award as a reflection of the value of building long-lasting relationships in the workplace, which Dudley attributes to a testament to women throughout the fresh produce.
“Women often have a different perspective of the community and the whānau unit, and this drives us to develop alternative solutions to deliver essential nutrition to New Zealanders,” shared Dudley.
Dudley believes that the success of United Fresh’s team echoes the international call for gender equality, which New Zealand’s $6 billion industry should embrace.
“Studies in Aotearoa have found that women represent 50 percent of workers in the industry, yet they hold less than 20 percent of leadership positions. That’s a statistic United Fresh is keen to change.”
5+ A Day Media Manager Katie Fegan discussed how horticulture has the appearance of being traditionally male-orientated. However, women have always been an integral and essential part of growing and harvesting fruit and vegetables. She described that as the industry grows and learns to acknowledge women’s importance within the industry, so too will the opportunities for women.
United Fresh’s Paula Dudley emphasised that challenges the industry is currently grappling with, including environmental, financial, and otherwise, will allow great opportunity for women’s fresh perspective to help bring solutions.
