Kiwifruit industry in New Zealand and Growers, who were calling the berries "melonettes", because the local name for the fruit, "Chinese gooseberry", had political connotations due to the Cold War, and to further distinguish it from real gooseberries, which are prone to a fungus called anthracnose. An American importer, Norman Sondag of San Francisco, complained that "melonettes" was as bad as "Chinese gooseberry" because melons and berries were both subject to high import tariffs, and instead asked for a short Maori name that quickly connoted New Zealand. In June 1959, during a meeting of Turners and Growers management in Auckland, Jack Turner suggested the name
New Zealand NBL Rookie of the Year Award New Zealand NBL Rookie of the Year Award The National Basketball League Rookie of the Year is an annual National Basketball League (NBL) award given since the 1992 New Zealand NBL season to the best performing rookie New Zealander of the regular season. The award was originally given to the best Young Player of the Year from 1986 until 1991, with centre Warren Adams winning the award twice within four years. In 1992, forward Pero Cameron won the league's first Rookie of the Year award. This name stood until 2005, when a slight adjustment to the rules saw the Rookie