The plants would enable economically viable honey production as early as 2020, he said.
"We had high demand for our first release of seedlings and we're confident that our second release will also be highly sought after."
Landowners interested in establishing manuka plantations to help address erosion issues were able to apply for MPI funding through the Afforestation Grant Scheme. Applications open in April 2016 for planting in winter 2017.
"We can match a proven cultivar to the land and environment and we can back that up with a range of support services right through the production cycle."
Mr McPherson said more than 1000ha of trial sites throughout New Zealand had been testing a range of manuka varieties understand the plants' performance in different environments.
It was not just about providing an additional revenue stream but also minimising the risk of erosion and keeping sediment out of waterways, he said. "It's a win-win."
MRPL chairman Neil Walker said backcountry land provided ideal conditions. "There is a lot of steep and fairly inaccessible land out there that, if used for plantation manuka, could prevent slips and erosion. The poorer-producing parts of a hill-country farm can actually cost money to farm, and we can change that."
However, last year Mossop's Honey owner Neil Mossop advised caution. He told The Land that farmers and landowners could lose money as manuka plantations might not work in some areas due to soil types and other factors.
A UMF foundation member, Federated Farmers executive, National Beekeeping Association member and Farm Forestry member, Mr Mossop said data he had collected over 24 years showed pine trees were more lucrative.
MPI's Afforestation Grant Scheme aims to help establish about 15,000ha of new forest plantations between 2015 and 2020. Under the scheme, it could provide grants of $1300/ha, to a total of $19.5m, to help plant new forests.
In return, the Crown would get the carbon credits - but people must commit to maintaining the forest for at least 10 years.
Bay of Plenty Regional Council Kaituna catchments manager Pim de Monchy said its Riparian Management Plans could assist landowners with up to 50per cent of the cost of eligible works to reduce soil erosion, bacteria and nutrient run-off from private land. Eligible works included planting suitable species like manuka, fencing, weed control, pest control, treatment wetlands and bunds to slow down water in catchment headwaters.
"We also offer incentives for planting native trees to enhance or restore wildlife habitat through our Biodiversity Management Plans, although the mnuka would in that case need to be part of a diverse mix of natives rather than being planted in a single-species stand."
Large-scale forestry was not eligible for RMP funding, she said.
Over the past three years, the council had invested more than $2.2m to get a total of 251km of stream length protected and 2942ha of erosion-prone land converted from grazing to forestry or other more sustainable uses. Mnuka was one of the more common species chosen, along with kanuka, karamu, mahoe, rewarewa, pittosporums, lacebark, akeake, cabbage tree, sedges, rushes and flax, she said.
