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
Welcome to the New to him it is "Right-sized at ten songs with no filler to speak of, Welcome to the New is another entry in the band's long list of triumphs." At "USA Today", Brian Mansfield rated the album three stars out of four, remarking that "Here, renewal and spiritual transformation actually sound fun." Grace S. Aspinwall of "CCM Magazine" rated the album four stars out of five, calling it "Their finest work to date." At "Worship Leader", Jay Akins rated the album four-and-a-half stars, observing how "Welcome to the New is a party from top to bottom" that "brings newness to a