[quote:5c046859d8="drphred"]Esp since the Kiwi fruit is an import from China. It's not native to New zealand.
Origin: The kiwifruit is native to the Yangtze River valley of northern China and Zhejiang Province on the coast of eastern China. The first seeds were brought out of China by missionaries to New Zealand at the turn of this century. Early nurserymen in New Zealand, such as Alexander Allison, Bruno Just, and Hayward Wright, recognized the potential of the fruit and it soon became a popular backyard vine. Several plants were sent to the Chico Plant Introduction Station in California and exist to this date. In addition to New Zealand and California, kiwifruit is also grown commercially in such areas as Italy, South Africa and Chile.[/quote:5c046859d8]

Some folks (including some Aussies who don't want NZ to get all the credit, perhaps?) call them "chinese gooseberries".