The sale of one of the North Island's biggest sheep and cattle stations to Ngati Kahungunu Iwi Inc has the potential to be very good for the region.
More than six months of negotiations culminated in a signing ceremony in Hastings between the Ngati Kahungunu Iwi Asset Holding Co andrepresentatives of the Herrick family, who have owned the property, Tautane Station, for 111 years.
Tautane Station is 3680ha of land situated near Herbertville in the Tararua district. Apparently it is breathtakingly beautiful, with 12km of coastline.
What is good about this deal is that the land remains in local hands. Also, Ngati Kahungunu's holding company has big plans for the property. They believe it could be used for aquaculture, sea ranching and reseeding of kaimoana stocks. Taratahi Agricultural Training for New Zealand will lease the land from the iwi and the farm will be a training facility for farm managers and agri-scientists. The farm will also be part of the iwi's wider "gate to plate" plan to build on relationships in the high-end Asian market which demands high-quality food direct from the producer.
I believe this deal will not only be beneficial to Ngati Kahungunu. The land will continue to be worked and the abundant coastline could now also be farmed in a sustainable way. Students eager to learn will benefit from hands-on experience and more of our fine produce will be exported to China.
Ngati Kahungunu Iwi Inc has shown in the past that it has a solid leadership team guided by chairman Ngahiwi Tomoana and his board. By purchasing Tautane Station, they have shown foresight that could see Hawke's Bay's economy reaping the rewards in years to come.
