Roadmap set to double hort exports by 2035
It's critical that the horticulture sector works together as part of a goal to double the sector’s exports by 2035.
Horticulture can expect to see more talent and capital in the industry with Maori, says Plant and Food chief executive officer Peter Landon-Lane.
There are many Maori businesses and people involved in horticulture, he told the Horticulture NZ conference in Nelson today.
As they were in the Te Tau Ihu region he acknowledged the Wakatu Corporation, owners of the Kono brand and wine, horticulture and seafood producers.
Across New Zealand, Maori now own 10% of the kiwifruit sector, he said. Many iwi and Maori organisations are looking at opportunities across a wide spectrum of horticultural crops and food products.
This new interest and investment from Maori promises big things for horticulture – great potential in land and capital but also new opportunities in branding, potentially new crops and a pool of young people who will help meet the need for talent.
A third of Maori are under the age of 15, so there's a talent pool, he said.
According to the most recent Rabobank Rural Confidence Survey, farmer confidence has inched higher, reaching its second highest reading in the last decade.
From 1 October, new livestock movement restrictions will be introduced in parts of Central Otago dealing with infected possums spreading bovine TB to livestock.
Phoebe Scherer, a technical manager from the Bay of Plenty, has won the 2025 Young Grower of the Year national title.
The Fencing Contractors Association of New Zealand (FCANZ) celebrated the best of the best at the 2025 Fencing Industry Awards, providing the opportunity to honour both rising talent and industry stalwarts.
Award-winning boutique cheese company, Cranky Goat Ltd has gone into voluntary liquidation.
As an independent review of the National Pest Management Plan for TB finds the goal of complete eradication by 2055 is still valide, feedback is being sought on how to finish the job.
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