Traditional Maori know-how key to exciting future

By SIMON COLLINS

A trust founded by New Zealand's most famous flax-weaving family is investigating extracting high-value products from flax - and using it to clean up effluent from dairy farms.

Nga Hua o te Harakeke (the Fruits of Flax) Trust at Te Kuiti is one of five groups to receive $100,000 each under a new Technology NZ scheme for Maori collectives to develop their resources.

The other four projects aim to collect mussel spat in Whangape Harbour north of Hokianga, cultivate pikopiko (edible fern fronds) in Rotorua for Auckland restaurants, fatten tuna (eels) in Horowhenua and develop cosmetics out of titi (muttonbird) oil in Southland.

Harakeke project manager Rangi Te Kanawa, a textile conservator, is the daughter and grand-daughter of weaving artists Diggeress Rangituatahi Te Kanawa and Dame Rangimarie Hetet.

Her trust is working with the crown institute Industrial Research to develop yarns, gels, gums and waxes from harakeke.

She sees a potential to revive an industry which provided clothing, house roofs and medicinal products in Maori society and maintained 300 flax mills producing rope in early colonial times.

The industry dwindled with the arrival of synthetics in the 20th century, but may be revived by modern environmental concerns.

"Harakeke does absorb waste matter from the earth, so it has bioremedial qualities like all plants do," said Rangi Te Kanawa.

"We believe we can establish plantations of NZ flax on marae, and possibly on dairy farms, that will be a means of reducing the amount of effluent that goes into our water tables.

"We also believe that in doing that, we can create a sustainable crop of harakeke."

Another trust, Maorifood.com Charitable Trust, has been established to work with Crop & Food Research to investigate possible cultivation of the edible fern fronds, pikopiko.

Crop & Food scientist Dr Julian Heyes said the trust was created by Charles Royal, a chef and former part-owner of the Karangahape Rd restaurant Te Ao Kohatu with activist Tame Iti.

"He has been harvesting the wild fern shoots and providing them to top-end restaurants in Auckland and Rotorua and is aware that there is more demand than he can meet," Dr Heyes said.

Auckland marketing agent John Millward said Maorifood.com used the fern fronds and other wild tastes from the New Zealand bush to create "signature New Zealand dishes" at restaurants such as Praxis and hotels such as the Heritage, Hyatt, Sheraton and Jet Inn.

"We are looking at the opportunity to add value to New Zealand produce for export. Instead of wood-smoked salmon, it's kawakawa-smoked salmon, mussels smoked in horopito [wild pepper], and so on."

Technology NZ Maori innovation manager Alan Groves said future projects likely to be financed under the new scheme included research on manuka honey, geothermal power, horticulture and internet-based radio.

Foundation for Research, Science and Technology Maori Innovation