North’s fragmented horticulture needs an action plan – report

 The action plan should identify options for such sectors as avocados, kiwifruit and citrus, says the report, released this month by the Economic Development Minister Stephen Joyce and Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy.

The industry must look at how to achieve scale, for example, via collaborative management, to increase value-add through R&D in the region, and to develop future leaders and workers. 

Joyce described the report, which also looked at tourism, forestry, dairy and aquaculture, as the most comprehensive on Northland’s economy in many years. Guy says the study highlights the need for diversification in the Northland primary sector to create higher incomes for households and higher-value exports for New Zealand. This includes sustainably building scale in dairy, avocado and citrus production. 

The report says Northland has a unique horticulture industry with advantages over and differences from the rest of New Zealand. Almost all the nation’s kumara, a third of its avocados, and a quarter of its citrus are grown in the region.

Yet GDP and jobs in horticulture have declined over the last 10 years, at about 2% a year, partly because of disease such as Psa and adverse weather. Nursery, flower growing and beekeeping have grown.

“Though the sub-sectors within horticulture in the region face several issues and opportunities for growth, the industry as a whole struggles to address them because it is fragmented and has a large number of small players. 

“The region’s Horticultural Forum represents the industry and provides a vehicle for industry players to join forces to develop a strategic action plan. 

“The plan could identify how Northland’s horticulture industry will position itself to double in value, e.g. could it become the food bowl for Auckland?” 

The plan should also look at how to develop future leaders, increase investment in and commercialise science and technology, focus export marketing, differentiate products, and exceed sustainability thresholds. The plan should be coordinated by Northland Inc. and the Horticulture Forum. 

“The plan development process could also involve the Ministry for Primary Industries and national bodies such as Horticulture New Zealand and the Avocado Industry Council.”

The report says manuka honey is identified as one of three horticulture areas with growth potential. Honey exports have grown 30% annually for 10 years; higher prices for ‘active’ manuka honey have boosted the value of exports. 

“Northland produces some of the highest medical grade manuka honey in New Zealand. However, the industry [has] small players with poor beekeeping practices. The opportunity is for Maori/iwi/hapu and the industry to work together to increase production of highly active (medical/nutraceutical grade) manuka honey and establish a collective vertically integrated honey company and/or brand for the region. 

“A coalition of iwi and producers in the upper North Island is currently exploring how to combine resources to grow the industry. The next step is for a business case and operating model to be developed.”

A key opportunity within apiculture and for the proposed coalition is the production of medical grade honey, the report says. Medical grade can sell for $50/kg vs $8-$15 per kg for non-medical grade honey. About 700 tonnes of honey in the region is reckoned medical grade, though this is only produced two out of five years. 

The region could produce 2000 tonnes of medical/cosmetic grade manuka honey, needing about 60,000 hives with skilled beekeepers producing the goods four out of every five years.

Government initiatives to grow horticulture in Northland:

• Go Global – a five year scheme supported by the PGP to increase productivity and capability in the avocado industry.
• Research to develop new avocado root stock, to allow avocado growing in areas of lesser soil quality.
• MBIE funding of research into preserving avocados during transport, to expand the number of potential markets.
• Manuka Research Project – a seven year scheme supported by the PGP to increase manuka honey exports to at least $1 billion.
• Sustainable Farming Fund support for a project to lift productivity and profitability of collectively owned Māori kiwifruit orchards.
• R&D scheme involving New Zealand and international researchers to develop strategies to combat Psa.