Frozen vegetables are handy to save money at the checkout when your favourite fresh vege is out of season.

But where they actually come from is confusing for many shoppers.

Chief executive of farming business Leaderbrand Richard Burke said earlier in the year that next to no frozen vegetables were being produced in New Zealand, and it was hurting local vegetable farmers.

He said they struggled to compete on price with international producers, and predicted smaller farms might close as cost pressures mounted.

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But David Hadfield, chairman of Process Vegetables, said local growers supplied more than 90% of frozen vegetables consumed in New Zealand.

“All the peas, beans, carrots and sweet corn is all grown and processed here, other than a bit of imported stuff that comes in occasionally.”

Some imported ingredients were also brought into the rest home and healthcare sectors because they produced meals on a set budget, he said.

There were 350 process vegetable growers in New Zealand, many of whom also growing vegetables to be sold fresh, he said.

The two main crops for frozen vegetables were peas and sweetcorn.

But for his part, Burke asked how it could be proven that local vegetables were 90% of the market.

“This highlights the importance of country of origin labelling. If the producers were absolutely crystal clear about their ingredients then we would know exactly what vegetables were locally grown and which were imported.

“We think that imported products should be labelled clearly so that customers can make an informed decision about their purchases. The label, made in New Zealand from imported and local ingredients is confusing for the customer. Luckily this is changing next year."

We looked at the country of origin labels on a number of frozen vegetable brands, and found every label was different.

Wattie’s rainbow mix, which has carrots, broccoli, corn, cauliflower and red peppers, was labelled “made in New Zealand from imported and local ingredients” while its 1kg bag of mixed carrots, peas, green beans and sweet corn was a “product of New Zealand”.

Countdown’s mixed vegetables chunky mix was a “product of Spain”, while its frozen spinach was “packed in Belgium from local and/or imported spinach”.

McCain’s mixture of peas, corn and carrot was labelled “grown in New Zealand”, while its mixed vegetables winter mix of green beans, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli was “packed in New Zealand from New Zealand and imported ingredients”.

Data from Stats NZ’s 2020 overseas trade statistics show New Zealand got the bulk of its frozen vegetable imports from China in 2020, and imported about $400 million.

In May 2023, new Country of Origin food labelling regulations will come into force, meaning all brands will have to disclose where products has been sourced from and packed.

The new regulations are made under the Fair Trading Act and the Commerce Commission is responsible for enforcing them.