The fruit bowl of New Zealand is shrinking as Hawke's Bay orchards continue to feel the impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle.
The region is nearing the two-year anniversary of the storm, which was one of the worst weather event in Aotearoa's history, killing 11 people and causing billions of dollars of damage.
Millions of tonnes of silt was dumped across Hawke's Bay, smothering crops and resulting in over 600 hectares of fruit trees having to be ripped out.
Apple grower Paul Paynter lost more than 180,000 trees, and told RNZ that many were still dying.
"Trees are dying all the time and there's phytothera and some other diseases kicking in. Tree health was compromised and some trees take a year or two to fall over."
His family own The Yummy Fruit Co and has been growing apples for over 160 years. He said Cyclone Gabrielle dealt them a blow that was proving hard to recover from.
"It's like a negative Powerball win. It's a loss of about 20 percent of production ... It's traumatic and you're compromised so you can't possibly turn a profit.
"It's a long work out and a hard road. We're managing our demise."
Paynter is one of about nine apple growers who have accessed the Kanoa Loan Scheme, which helps them borrow more from the bank, with the government guaranteeing 80 percent of the loan's default risk.
But Paynter said it was not enough to save many small to medium fruit-growing businesses.
"The loan scheme allows people to replant and get green shoots growing, but some balance sheets are so bad people will have to exit the industry ultimately.
"The thing about farmers ... is when farmers don't farm anymore, they don't talk about it, people die quietly in the rural communities. They're not whinges and they wander off into the sunset."
Paul Paynter's family have been growing apples for over 160 years. Photo: RNZ / REECE BAKER
He was predicting more growers would exit the industry.
"Nobody who's been significantly affected will survive in their current form."
As he reflected on the past two years, Paynter's voice wavered as he explained what motivated him to try to keep the company afloat.
"It's more desperate. It's more important. We've got 360 full-time employees and you see them turn up, you know, with their kids in the back seat, and you've gotta keep paying the wages because we've got lots of mouths to feed, lots of roofs to keep our people's heads.
"That money go around and keeping people employed is the most important thing. It's about supporting our community."
'We have listened to the sector'
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay said the government had been supporting cyclone-hit growers and farmers.
"Following the major weather events in early 2023, the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) provided support for urgent recovery efforts of affected farmers, growers, and rural communities.
"The funding enabled affected farmers and growers to undertake urgent repair work, including fencing, and clearing silt to save trees and vines.
"Along with significant other government funding, Budget 2023 provided a further $35.4 million to continue to support the recovery of rural communities."
The government's overhaul of the Resource Management Act would also help the sector, McClay said.
"We have listened to the sector and are moving swiftly to repeal unworkable rules and unnecessary regulation to free up farmers and growers to get on with producing food and fibre."
'A long road'
Chair of the Hawkes Bay Fruit Growers Association, Brian Nisbet, said many growers face a double burden, the storm's lingering financial fallout, and low apple prices, both locally and overseas.
"We need the prices to go up.
"Most [growers] would have borrowed huge amounts of money to start again, and that's going to take a long time to pay back.
"All our local costs and compliance and wages have gone up, but the apple [prices] overseas that we sell, and locally, haven't.
And, if that wasn't enough, many trees damaged by the storm are still dying years later.
"You don't really, you know, you can't really tell straight away. It may take two or three years for trees to be impacted and die.
But, while many in the region are struggling, most remain positive, encouraged by a strong growing season.
"We had an excellent spring, excellent right up till Christmas so the season looks like it's early.
"There's a good crop out there. It's a clean crop, as far as pests and disease, and it's a big crop.
"So growers are optimistic."
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