New Zealand kiwifruit marketer Zespri is "more than likely" to take legal action against a grower who allegedly distributed the company's patented SunGold and Gold9 varieties to Chinese growers, website Stuff.co.nz reported. 

During the group's annual meeting in Tauranga, chief operating officer Simon Limmer reportedly said the grower's license had been cancelled, their crop had been refused this year and they had been asked to cut the vines off their orchards.

"This is a significant breach of IP (intellectual property) and we are taking that pretty seriously," Limmer was quoted as saying.

The story reported Zespri had identified sites in China where the cultivars were planted and was able to monitor where the fruit had been distributed.

"It's crossed four different provinces, there are a number of different sites that we are looking at," Limmer was quoted as saying, adding the company was working with Chinese authorities on the matter, who had been helpful.

"The track record for enforcing IP in China is very poor, and there aren't any precedents in the horticulture sector for this type of case, but we are pleased and confident with the response we have had from the Chinese officials," he was quoted as saying.

www.freshfruitportal.com