Plant producing high-value kānuka products planned for Ruatōria

The kanuka plant. Photo / Supplied

A pilot plant to turn locally grown kānuka into high-value gourmet products is to be established in Ruatōria.

The plant will produce juice and “liquid smoke” - a food flavouring described as “hāngī in a bottle” - from the scrub-like trees closely related to mānuka.

Nuka Charitable Trust - which has a mandate to deliver benefits to the Ruatōria community - will receive $1.9 million over three years from the Ministry for Primary Industries for the plant’s set-up.

“The liquid smoke from kānuka could be added to foods ranging from cheese to mussels, while the kānuka juice could be used as an ingredient in the nutraceutical industry for wellness-oriented beverages such as kombucha,” Associate Agriculture Minister Jo Luxton said.

The East Coast settlement of Ruatoria: Photo / Supplied

“The kānuka will be sourced from the more than 15,000 hectares of Māori-owned land in Tairāwhiti.”

As a first step, a mobile pilot plant will be set up at the University of Auckland, which has developed laboratory-scale technology to extract juice from kānuka but now needs to optimise this for production at scale.

“Representatives of Whareponga from Ruatōria are in Auckland this week to put a programme together for training in how to maintain and operate the pilot plant, which will be relocated when the timing is right,” said Luxton.

Nuka - a name that shortens kānuka - is close to securing its first contract for the liquid smoke product and expects to eventually employ about 15 people in skilled jobs, which Luxton said is “significant” in a community of less than 800.

“They are also working with experts to explore export markets, particularly in Asia, with their eye on the food ingredient contract market rather than branded retail.”

Nuka was established in November 2022 to facilitate commercial opportunities for tangata whenua and Māori landowners. Its purpose includes reducing barriers to education and academic research for tangata whenua.