New medical life for Northland abattoir

Scott Massey has plans to turn a former abattoir into a plant extracting products from animals for the pharmaceuticals industry. Photo / John Stone

It started out life as a boutique abattoir, slaughtering animals for sale at farmers markets.

But now, a Hikurangi abattoir has a new lease of life killing animals for meat, and medical use.

And if things go well, animal heart valves and blood products could also be developed into what its backers hope is a lucrative industry.

Scott Massey, Chas Edwards and American Randall McCoy are behind NZ Life Science.

Twelve jobs will come with the new abattoir, in a town that has long held a place in the hearts of many rural Northlanders. As a youngster, a trip to the Hikurangi Dairy Factory was a big deal, especially if you were getting new gumboots from the shop.

Go back even further and the town grew around the Hikurangi Coal Mining Company.

The last coal mine at Hikurangi closed as late as 1971. The dairy factory followed in the mid 1980s.

Since then the town centre has struggled. Over time, cheap accommodation meant one or two undesirables moved in.

But in recent years things have been slowly changing.

You can buy a character home in Hikurangi for much cheaper than, say, central Whangarei. Families are moving into Hikurangi.

You can buy a decent cup of coffee at a Hikurangi cafe now, there are good takeaways and the pub, unlike many small towns, is still open. Small things, but positive indicators nonetheless.

Then there is the social infrastructure like the local rugby, golf and bowling clubs, that have kept going despite the town's economic ups and downs.

The Hikurangi abattoir is a first for NZ Life Science.

Let's hope they are not the last innovative company that sees the potential in this small town north of Whangarei.