Vulcan, I dont know what is the NZ apple board, but I imagine is an association of all the apple producers in NZ.
Maybe I explained mysalf bad (as usual), but there's a big difference for me between a local or national organization (like the ones we have about ("the real napolitan pizza", or "the real mozzarella di bufala"), and a single corporation that sell you a seed with specific charateristics, sterile, and capable to deny, in various manners the use of your crop for other things.
It's like grasping you for the balls.
Modifying nature it's a dangerous playground, in both ways, and in this case I trust more the traditional way than the profit oriented new way.