Leading Bay grower quits | Hawkes Bay News | Local News in Hawkes Bay

Hawke's Bay fruitgrowing identity Ru Collin is looking to step back from hands-on orcharding.

Mr Collin, a director of Horticulture New Zealand and chairman of the Hawke's Bay Labour Governance Group, put Rakaunui Fruit Company on the market during winter.

Mr Collin grows mainly pipfruit over 30ha of owned orchard and 30ha of leased orchard.

A secondary crop of persimmon s also grown.

``We've got the place on the market for sale, we've been working through winter on that,'' he said.

Mr Collin  had hoped to have the place sold before the start of the new season, but it was a ``difficult time selling things right now''.

``We started it, so we're going to see it through.''

After more than two decades growing fruit, Mr Collin said the time was ripe to try something different.

``It's a mixture of things. As much as anything (it's) time to start looking at doing something else ... I've been pretty busy with it for 25 years.

``Myself and my wife are looking at different things.''

However, he said he hoped to stay in the industry in some capacity.

``I like the representative part of the industry and would like to put a bit more time toward that,'' Mr Collin said. ``It's something I think
I'm quite good at and there's a need for it to be done quite well.

The industry has never faced so many issues that need addressing.''