Yoke Har Lee: Fresh take on convenience foods

Kaweka's Scott Weir (right) and Hugh Gillum give consumers a taste at last weekend's Food Show in Auckland. Photo / Glenn Jeffrey

Hawkes Bay-based Kaweka Food Company is showing that long-life food can be tasty, easily portable, preservative-free and price-friendly.

From butter chicken and Moroccan lamb to beef and ale casserole, Kaweka's ready-to-eat meal packs are finding fans among trampers and hunters, the military and people who just don't have time to cook.

Chairman Roderick Pearce is excited about the prospects of the company in which he owns a 50 per cent stake. "One of the things about us is we are constantly improving the quality of our product to meet high standards as well the nutritional value."

Backed by a new $6 million plant to meet growth, the company is now in a position to cater to the service sector as well as the wider consumer market.

"We are able to make food with zero waste. The average catering service companies end up with 25-30 per cent waste. We are able to meet the needs of service organisations such as rest homes and motels that have to have food on hand - our advantage is our product's long shelf life," Pearce says.

Kaweka is also seeking opportunities in the Pacific region, where refrigeration can pose a problem.

Kaweka uses a thermal cooking process to gently cook its food in a steam jacket kettle, sealed in pouches, and sterilised to destroy bacteria. This method gives the product a shelf life of at least 18 months.

Kaweka Food was founded in 2002 by two young men - David McLellan and John Brandeis - who at that stage were about to become brothers-in-law. Besides their interest in food, they were also keen trampers and hunters who saw the need for easily portable meals.

The pair acquired a small factory in Hastings and leased the plant required for processing shelf-stable meals that could be carried in a pouch and heated by immersing them in boiling water. They named the company after the picturesque Kaweka Ranges where they used to tramp and hunt.

The company is now owned by a group of private investors, including Pearce, who has been a livestock farmer for more than 55 years and is a founder of the Waitotara Meat Company, located near Wanganui.

In the company's early days, the meals were marketed through sports outlets. As it expanded its founders brought in more shareholders, hired specialist staff and developed a full range of products to target the supermarket trade. The company now offers a range of more than 40 products.

"By mid-2005 it became apparent that the original factory and plant were not going to meet the standards required for export and had limitations for local trade," Pearce says. "The company was refinanced and a large factory was acquired and fitted out to the highest world standards."

The facelift has given Kaweka new muscle to carve out a wider market for its products.

It has made inroads into the Whole Foods Market supermarket chain, which has 270 stores in the US and Canada, has been supplying a military organisation for a year, and has received interest from similar organisations.

"With support from NZTE [New Zealand Trade & Enterprise] we employed a US marketing company in conjunction with two other New Zealand companies, Village Press and Cyclops," Pearce says. The three companies have supported each other at trade fairs, and shared valuable information. The joint approach helped seal the Whole Foods deal.

Pearce believes one of the areas the company needs to work on is refining the taste of its products, given that consumers have keen taste buds.

Packaging might also be reviewed. "The current Kaweka packaging is costly and requires a long lead time to supply. That makes it difficult to supply short production runs to test new products. There are more user-friendly systems now available and we are considering them," Pearce says.

The recession has been a challenge, slowing the company's penetration in the US market.

"Our potential customers are indicating strong interest but delaying accepting new products till things pick up. Our advice from the marketing people is to be patient," Pearce says. "They say the American market is slow to penetrate but strong when you are there."

General manager Scott Weir says investments have been made in developing consumer awareness of Kaweka's products by active participation at trade fairs, consumer events and supermarkets.

To keep on top of the game, the company pays a lot of attention to product development. Weir says: "We have an ongoing product development programme run by qualified people and critically monitored by staff and visitors. Products are developed in small production batches that are subject to intensive assessment.

"We have around 40 products on offer including red meats, chicken, veal, risotto, seafood chowder, vegetables, fruit salad and other pasta and rice options."

At $6.95 for a 350g meat-based meal, the company's food is affordable. Weir reckons that Kaweka's competitively priced products will have a wide appeal.

"We have a lot of opportunities over a number of different areas. One of our challenges is making sure that we define our direction going forward so we can maximise our potential," he says.

He has some advice for other aspiring food companies: do not underestimate the difficulties in meeting very complex compliance requirements, especially for meat-based products.

Brand awareness is important and the company has invested heavily in the area. Customers are also becoming quite cost conscious and increasingly demanding more value for their money, he adds. Meals are gluten-free and preservative-free.

Product development ability was recognised when products it helped develop for organic baby food company Green Monkey won accolades at the Massey University Food Awards.