Noni growers remain positive despite Covid-19 and disrupted shipping routes placing pressure on their market.

About 20 growers met in Rarotonga on Monday to get an update on the market. 

Cook Islands Noni Marketing manager Gwen Welland: “While things have been slow, we want to assure our growers that we are still looking for markets, and our customers are still interested in noni”.

“We are looking at other ways we can use it.”

Believed to be high in antioxidants, noni is also said to be good for cancers, brain disease, and is anti-inflammatory, making it useful for pain and cardiovascular disease.

The fruit has an unpleasant bitter taste – making it useful for liver conditions, but can be mixed with other foods to mask its flavour.

For decades it has been a high ranking agricultural export product from the Cook Islands.  

Cook Islands Noni Marketing has been the producer of 100 per cent pure Cook Islands noni juice for the past 20 years and was the first company in the Pacific Islands to be certified 100 per cent pure organic by the central Chinese government for the Chinese market.

Welland said there was confidence in the market.

“We have been in business for 20 years and we intend to continue, we have full support from the growers.”