Back again this year is the Bay of Islands Vintage Railway event, Ake ki te Moana (River to the Ocean), which last year won the Most Outstanding Event of the festival.
The wine and food festival that made its successful debut last year is back for another month-long experience.
Savour Northland will run from October 1 to 31 and feature a diverse and evolving line-up of events that celebrate the region’s food, drink, landscapes and regional pride and local producers, chefs, venues and artisans across the region.
Last year, there were 126 events and 49 entries into the Savour Northland Challenge and organisers expect the same level of support, or even more, this coming October.
Already more than 25 venues have joined the first wave of the 2025 programme, with 40 unique events already confirmed from Mangawhai to Awanui.
Northland Winegrowers return as a Gold Sponsor, with their vineyards, winemakers and award-winning drops featured in many events across the month.
“Savour Northland puts our wines where they belong, which is front and centre,” Peter Jones of Northland Winegrowers said.
“This October, we look forward to welcoming guests to our cellar doors, joining our winemakers for tastings and pairings, and celebrating what makes Northland wine truly unique.”
Back again this year is the Bay of Islands Vintage Railway event, Ake ki te Moana (River to the Ocean), which last year won the Most Outstanding Event of the festival.
Other notable events that have already signed up include a Magical Evening of Cuisine and Opera at the Turner Centre with culinary creations by Salt & Seed, a private dining company, and performances by Joanna Foote, a classical singer who holds a Bachelor of Music from The University of Auckland and a Master’s in Music from UCLA.
Last year, Salt & Seed held the long lunch at Omata Estate near Russell and promoter Jackie Sanders said it was a sellout and “the food, OMG, I am still talking about the food.”
The owner of the Russell Four Square supermarket, Glenn Wells, has been awarded the “Member of the Year” at the annual Foodstuffs Charlie Awards. The Charlie Awards are presented by Foodstuffs, the parent company of Four Square, to recognise excellence among their Four Square owner-operators and suppliers.
It is one of the highest recognitions a store owner can receive within Foodstuffs and acknowledges hard work and leadership.
The awards are named after the iconic Four Square mascot “Cheeky Charlie” and acknowledge the hard work and dedication of these individuals in serving their communities. They were held during the Foodstuffs North Island’s annual Four Square conference in Auckland on August 14 and are a way to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements of Four Square stores and their owners.
Wells is also a part of the wider Foodstuffs family. He has been a long-time champion of the Four Square brand, serving as chair of the Four Square banner group and he continues to support the wider co-operative through mentorship and experience.
He and his wife Sarah Wells and their two daughters took over the Russell Four Square last November from long-time owners Andrew and Wendy Porter, who were also award-winners during their 20 years there.
They won the Fresh Store of the Year Award in 2023. The store was closed for six months in 2019 and totally refurbished and like Wells, they also won the Member of the Year Award.
Back in 2008, a group of about 10 people met in Kerikeri with a purpose in mind. They would chop wood, deliver it to various households and donate the money they received to the Fred Hollows Foundation.
Today, there are 30 active members of the Kerikeri Woodchoppers, although not everyone arrives each week. They are mainly older, retired people around 70 years old or older and they are mostly men, although there some women involved too.
They are there for companionship, for exercise (and there are no gym fees involved) and a feature of the morning is the get-together – the smoko.
The wood is sourced locally from trees that have been felled and from hedges that have been removed. Locals will phone in with offers of wood to be chopped.
Primarily they harvest gum trees but there is Casuarina, Lawson Cypress and Macrocarpa too, all woods that burn well.
A regular team of eight members operate two wood-splitting machines. There is also a team of chainsaw operators who work at the wood source and in the log yard adjacent to the wood shed.
There are two tractors with operators, one to cut the logs to the appropriate length and help load the logs and the other who brings rounds from the wood yard to the splitters.
Group members also deliver the wood and they load the logs manually on to the two utility vehicles.
All the machinery is loaned by members of the group, who also donate the fuel, which helps to bolster the money that goes to the foundation.
Mike Collins, one of the group’s members, says the Fred Hollows Foundation is one of the most efficient charities in New Zealand.
“It’s easy to see the benefit received by the patients. Restoration of sight changes lives and the people who purchase the wood at commercial rates are, in effect, making a donation to the foundation.”
The woodchoppers is also an efficient operation. To date, the Kerikeri Woodchoppers have raised $440,000 for the Fred Hollows Foundation, which goes towards restoring and preserving sight, towards training eye care workers and supporting the eye healthcare systems.
Interested in joining the Woodchoppers? Phone Grant Robertson on 027 929 9589.