Growers here say Zespri has not only lost the intellectual property, it has lost control of the variety in China, with the growth in the illicit fruit threatening Zespri's stake in its largest market.
Zespri's solution is to put its sticker on the counterfeit fruit in a controlled commercial trial, giving technology and advice to the Chinese growers who are producing the illicit fruit.
SunGold growers in New Zealand will vote on the plan in June and some aren't happy about it.
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Farmers Weekly and other agri business publications.
"Zespri have found themselves on the horns of a dilemma," says Rennie. "They found that there's a lot of illegally grown SunGold in the Sichuan province and it’s only likely to grow further."