AgFirst - independent consultants to agriculture and horticulture

AgFirst Horticulture Consultants


AgFirst has a large horticultural team with a wide range of expertise working throughout New Zealand. We are active in providing technical knowledge in all horticulture crops with specialist knowledge in kiwifruit, pipfruit, stonefruit, grapes and olives.

The New Zealand horticultural industry is very much a part of the global marketplace, and a number of our consultants travel and work overseas regularly. This ensures AgFirst's horticulture clients have access not only to the latest in international practice, innovations and market insights, but with the help of our consultants can make the best strategic use of that information in a New Zealand context.

We have a broad range of skills and services, including:

  • Technical management advice
  • Integrated fruit production
  • Financial and productive benchmarking for key crops in New Zealand
  • Crop estimation
  • Field Research and Development
  • Loss assessment
  • Strategic business planning, budgeting and financial reporting
  • Property supervision
  • Resource consents
AgFirst horticulture consultants work at all levels of the industry, including:

  • Individual growers and grower groups
  • Packhouse and supply groups
  • Exporters
  • Regional and District Councils
  • Government Ministries and Departments, including state owned enterprises

The AgFirst Horticultural Team

Ian Stevens Horticultural Consultant, kiwifruit and avocado specialist. Bay of Plenty
John Wilton Horticultural Consultant, deciduous fruit specialist. Hawke's Bay
Jonathan Brookes Horticultural Technical Manager, technical and grower services. Hawke's Bay
Kevin Manning Horticultural Consultant Hawke's Bay
Ross Wilson Horticultural Consultant. Hawke's Bay
Carla Emms Horticultural Consultant, viticulture specialist. Hawke's Bay
Craig Hornblow Horticultural Consultant. Motueka
Grant McKay Horticulture Lab Manager, Project Manager Motueka
Steve Spark Horticultural Consultant. Motueka

Projects and Services

The following projects and services offer some insight in the capabilities of our horticultural consultancy team.

Benchmarking for Intensive Orchard Production

A project set up to study the performance of intensive and semi-intensive apple blocks throughout New Zealand, benchmarking their performance against our established standard planting system in each district. read more...

NZ Pipfruit National Crop Estimate and Statistics Annual

Each year Ross and the team collate a huge amount of data to put together these two reports. Historically the crop estimate has been accurate to 4%. The Statistics Annual is becoming a key piece of industry infrastructure.

MAF Farm Monitoring

Each year the MAF Policy monitors the production and financial status of farms and orchards. These models are the basis of MAF Policy’s series of short-term financial and physical forecasts for agriculture and horticulture sectors and regions within New Zealand.

See more horticulture projects and services >>