Every day we hear more about how consumers worldwide are seeking a healthy diet, rich in plant-based food. This presents fantastic opportunities for New Zealand horticulture, with increased demand for our premium food. We are growing rapidly and horticulture is the industry to be a part of.

While demand for our healthy food is high, challenges are not insignificant as we battle for growing land, access to water, and enough people to keep us growing. As we look at Our Food Future, the theme of the 2019 Horticulture Conference, we need to focus on solutions and some of them need to be found fast. Some solutions will come from better collaboration, and others will come from being creators and early adopters of science, technology and innovation.

One thing we know for sure, we need to be able to grow food not only for an increasing New Zealand population, but also for an increasing worldwide population. Our food needs to be safe, healthy, environmentally sustainable and affordable.

We want you to come to our conference to join the big conversations; to see and hear about what is being done to enable and enhance our food future; and to be an active part of that future.

Mike Chapman, Chief Executive, Horticulture New Zealand