spinofflive
Screenshot: Henry Cooke on Twitter
Screenshot: Henry Cooke on Twitter

PoliticsApril 22, 2022

Who are the swaying Kiwi Brothers?

Screenshot: Henry Cooke on Twitter
Screenshot: Henry Cooke on Twitter

Who are these mysterious dancing kiwifruit? Why do they sway so mournfully? A connoisseur of Japanese mascots explains.

The big button that says “viral content” was slammed with vigour this week as Stuff reporter Henry Cooke reported video footage of the New Zealand trade mission in Japan, and while bilateral trade engagements rarely scrape the popular consciousness, this particular video captured the unlikely sight of two human-sized kiwifruit slowly dancing to a wistful classical composition.

Because visual non sequitur travels well as a meme, the footage soon spread across social media and drew a range of comments from “this rules” to “this sucks”, but most often “this is weird”. People who have never seen a David Lynch film described the scene as “something out of a David Lynch film”. But the scene made perfect sense to those who closely follow the world of Japanese mascots and their relationship with everything from sports teams to consumer products and government organisations. So, please allow me to introduce the Kiwi Brothers, the breakout stars of Zespri branded fruits in Japan.

Who are the Kiwi Brothers? (キウイブラザーズ)

The straight answer is that Gurin (Green) and Gorudo (Gold) are the official mascots for the Zespri corporation in Japan and other East Asian markets including Singapore and South Korea. The better answer is that they are two brothers who work hard to develop their delicious flavour, vivifying colour and astounding nutritional value for the benefit of all fruit lovers – offering advice on how to bring their fruit to full ripeness with the help of their friends Banana, Apple and Orange.

In the commercial below we see the two Kiwi Brothers’ deep commitment to a healthy lifestyle: Running 10km daily, lifting weights at the gym, coming face-to-face with a Bigfoot while tramping, standing on reflexology pads at the public baths, shedding weight in a hot sauna, all for the good of their honoured customers.

When the Kiwi Brothers debuted in 2016 they were an instant hit with TV viewers and shoppers alike, drawing demand not only for kiwifruit but also for their own likeness. Kiwifruit demand premium prices in Japan and made an eye-watering NZ$580 million last year, while a casual search on eBay shows that stuffed toys of the Kiwi Brothers can go for over NZ$200 a pair.

Mascots in general enjoy a privileged place in Japanese pop culture for a number of complex historical and cultural reasons, including a tradition for the personification of nature which is not dissimilar to Māori culture: as a simple example, mountains are often recognised as ancestors. Within the modern world of commerce, mascots offer a way to represent a brand without the product needing to be present. The Kiwi Brothers then offer the best of both worlds by bringing a natural object to life, and remaining in the public eye before and after the lucrative kiwifruit season has passed.

Why do they sway with such melancholy?

In a world where content is king, context is often the pauper, so explaining exactly how these fuzzy superstars came to slowly shuffle in front of the prime minister of New Zealand takes some unravelling. Firstly, the event being filmed was officially hosted by Zespri rather than the government of Japan directly, so the presence of mascots as a part of corporate branding can be expected. Secondly, it’s not odd to host an international delegation with a recital of classical music, nor is it odd that a Japanese composition should be played.

The full context then, is that the trio of violin, piano and shakuhachi (traditional flute) played a range of music both eastern and western at the event, including more upbeat numbers that might suit the Kiwi Brothers. The video just so happens to capture a performance of Kōjō no Tsuki, which is a very well-known tune in Japan, expressing the classical aesthetic quality of “mono no aware”, which might be understood as “a reflection on the passage of time” or more expansively as “an appreciation for the transitory nature of all things”. Gurin and Gorudo simply honour this famous composition in their movements, swaying as a falling leaf might in the wistful airs of autumn, knowing that in time all things shall and must pass.

OK, maybe that doesn’t make anything clearer. But the video does highlight the friendly coexistence of east and west, the modern and the classical, the sacred and the vitamin-rich, and that’s something we should all appreciate rather than dismiss.

Keep going!
As a kid, inflation is about balloons. As an adult, it’s somewhat less fun (Image: Tina Tiller/Getty)
As a kid, inflation is about balloons. As an adult, it’s somewhat less fun (Image: Tina Tiller/Getty)

PoliticsApril 22, 2022

Inflation is a global problem, but there’s still plenty the Beehive could do to help

As a kid, inflation is about balloons. As an adult, it’s somewhat less fun (Image: Tina Tiller/Getty)
As a kid, inflation is about balloons. As an adult, it’s somewhat less fun (Image: Tina Tiller/Getty)

Grant Robertson says surging inflation is beyond his control; the opposition says the government should be doing more. They’re both right, argues Justin Giovannetti.

The signs were everywhere across the economy before yesterday’s announcement. New Zealand’s inflation rate is now at a 30-year high of 6.9%, reflecting the soaring cost of everything from tomatoes to used cars.

Most of us don’t really know what to expect. The last time inflation was this high in New Zealand, East German border guards were starting to dismantle the Berlin Wall. There is now a growing political battle in Wellington to pin blame on someone, or something, for ending a gilded 30-year run of manageable inflation and predictable interest rates.

Finance minister Grant Robertson says this is being caused by global forces, outside of the Beehive’s control. The National opposition argues the government has a role to play. To some extent, economists say both are right. The argument also isn’t unique to New Zealand, from the US to France, ruling parties and oppositions are holding similar debates. The reason for the blame game is obvious. The political points to be won by convincing voters that the government is at fault, for high petrol prices and expensive groceries, are immense.

Not just New Zealand: The higher cost of living is hitting hard around the world, including in Europe. (Photo: Hannibal Hanschke/Getty Images)

The international picture backs much of Robertson’s claim. People around the world are reading similar inflation stories and feeling similar pain. In the UK, inflation is at a nearly 30-year high. In the US, it’s a 40-year high. New Zealand’s 6.9% is close to the global average. Canada is slightly lower at 6.7%, while the UK is at 7%. The European economies are generally experiencing slightly higher inflation than in Britain, while the US is at 8.5%. Many of the countries New Zealand compares itself to are suffering together.

“This is absolutely a global phenomenon. Interest rates across the world are at record levels,” said Craig Renney, the economist for the Council of Trade Unions.

He undertook a recent analysis of any link between Covid spending and inflation. He found none. Even a country like Sweden, whose decision to tackle Covid without a public health response was seen as madness by many, now has an inflation rate of 6.1%. Government spending isn’t the culprit. It’s the soaring cost of food, petrol prices, building materials and the increase in council rates. There’s no significant part of the economy that isn’t seeing an increase in prices.

“It’s microchips, it’s electronics, goods made in China where they are subject to lockdowns, and a global conflict disrupting supply chains across Europe. Russia is a large producer of aluminium and nickel – which are used for batteries – as well as oil and gas. Ukraine is one of the world’s largest producers of sunflower oil. Russian and Ukraine are some of the world’s largest wheat producers,” said Renney.

Most economists had actually expected the inflation number to be worse for New Zealand, well over 7%. It’s likely the figure is better than expected because of the decision to temporarily reduce petrol taxes. Petrol prices increased by 8.7% over the past year according to Stats NZ, while diesel increased a whopping 16%. Drivers who use diesel are getting relief through a reduction in road user charges.

petrol
Before the fuel tax cut, the only way was up for petrol prices. (Image: Tina Tiller)

The fuel tax cut shows how the government has a role to play. With widening lockdowns in China and a worsening conflict in Europe, inflation will likely get worse this year. The impact of today’s closures and disruptions won’t be felt for many months. As Renney says, the Beehive can help cut the country’s reliance on petrol and diesel; it can help upgrade one of the world’s least efficient car fleets. It can help ween the country off increasingly expensive fossil fuels for electricity generation, while insulating more homes to cut power demand. That all helps lower inflation.

The global nature of inflation doesn’t meant the country’s leaders can shrug their shoulders. There’s one country that threatens to torpedo the government’s claim that it couldn’t have done things differently: Australia. Inflation across the Tasman is only running at 3.5%. Among our nearest neighbours in Asia, New Zealand’s inflation is one of the highest. South Korea, China and Vietnam are also significantly lower.

Eric Crampton, chief economist at the New Zealand Initiative, says our Reserve Bank has some explaining to do. The bank is responsible for the national economy and, according to Crampton, it owns some of the current situation. When the economy looked like it was going to crash into a deep depression in the first months of Covid-19, the Reserve Bank dusted off its playbook from the global financial crisis and pumped billions into the economy. Within months, it became clear that the economy wasn’t going to crash after all. “This was not the time you want to run the GFC playbook again,” said Crampton.

The bank kept interest rates low for most of the next two years, watching as the housing market soared and unemployment tumbled to a historic low. While that was great for homeowners and workers, it set the dominoes now tumbling in today’s inflation surge.

“It’s going to take a fair bit to get inflation under control. For a long time, New Zealand had one of the most credible inflation targeting regimes in the world. We pioneered it,” said Crampton. Now, he’s not so sure.

“There’s nothing the bank can do about the war in Ukraine or global fuel shocks. The bank should look through that. But because the bank under the current governor has cared about everything under the sun except inflation, it will take time to create credibility that it cares about inflation. The last annual report mentioned climate change more often than inflation.”

The Reserve Bank is now aggressively raising interest rates, but that alone won’t win this battle. Inflation has a way of keeping itself alive. Workers likely are asking their bosses for raises now or thinking about it. Once those raises become large enough, prices increase, fuelling a cycle for more wage increases. And there’s one question top of mind when a worker asks for a big wage increase: Will inflation be with us for a long time?

A magic 8 ball would likely tell you: Signs point to yes.

But wait there's more!