Market may see more vendors

The Te Mata Mushrooms stall at the Hastings City Growers' Market. Foodstuffs has stopped selling the stock in the city.

Foodstuffs' denial of spoiling tactics towards the new Hastings City Growers' Market has encouraged more market vendors to come forward, says Hastings City Business Association manager Susan McDade.

Te Mata Mushrooms was recently dropped as a supplier to local supermarkets.

Te Mata is owned by Business Association chairman Michael Whittaker, a champion of the Growers' Market.

The supermarkets' managers declined to comment on the matter, referring Hawke's Bay Today to Foodstuffs corporate headquarters. A Foodstuffs representative cited company protocols as the reason managers would not speak directly.

The representative said the decision to no longer stock Te Mata Mushrooms was unrelated to the Growers' Market, even though the supermarket chain continued to support Te Mata Mushrooms in the North Island.

Mr Whittaker would not comment on whether he saw a link.

Havelock North New World, Hastings New World and Hastings Pak'nSave now stock Christchurch mushrooms.

In a letter to the editor today, the CEO of the Hawke's Bay Chamber of Commerce, Wayne Walford, said he was very disappointed at the stance taken by Hastings supermarkets to buy produce from Christchurch when other Foodstuffs group members "buy our local produce".

Ms McDade said the inaugural Growers' Market received positive feedback from the 20 stallholders, CBD retailers and shoppers.

It was planned to open on two blocks of Heretaunga St East but instead opened on one block because of a lack of vendors, including Farmers' Market stallholders worried it would undermine their Sunday market at the showgrounds.

Ms McDade said Saturday would see more vendors "now they [Foodstuffs] have publicly said they are not blocking anyone from coming".