Hawke's Bay political, business and community leaders have been working together to pitch the region as a prime place for high-level investment.
During a visit to the Hawke's Bay Business Hub, a top-level delegation from New Zealand's Investment Attraction Taskforce, which aims to match overseas investment opportunities to regional communities, heard directly from regional mayors on what those investment options there were.
Central Hawke's Bay District Council Mayor Alex Walker, speaking as the interim chair of Matariki REDS leadership forum, said the Hawke's Bay region was ripe for investment as we pursue the vision of Matariki (the regional economic development strategy).
"We need a diverse, high-value economy that can enable success for all households and whanau. As a region we are primarily food producers – we welcome investment that can bring us closer to markets, with premium-value products and the development of high-quality jobs," Walker said.
Hastings District Council Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said the Tomoana Food Innovation project was a fine example of a collaborative regional project enabled by the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF).