Each week, New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers Inc (NZKGI) receives on average seven requests from kiwifruit growers seeking assistance. Many of these calls are from growers who are in dispute with a contractor, their packhouse or someone else with whom they have a contractual relationship. Often these disputes are about what the contract means as the contractor has not done what is required of them. The main issues of dispute fall into the following categories: In all cases where there is a dispute, thereis a breakdown in communication between the grower and the contractor. As the relationship breaks down, threats are made and the spiral to a full-on dispute moves rapidly. Soon there are threats of lawyers and court action. Sometimes, if the contractoris a large operator, the threat of lawyers and courts is used to pressure the grower to agree with what the contractor is proposing.
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