Honey and money on agenda at Fieldays

The filled carparks highlight the popularity of Fieldays. Photo / File

Hawke's Bay will be well represented in diverse ways at Fieldays at Mystery Creek from Wednesday to Saturday next week.

The list includes Smedley Station instructor and world champion farm fencer Shane Bouskill who will be seeking a fourth Golden Pliers national farm fencing title in five years, with son Tony as possibly the toughest opposition. The list also includes the seminars being run by Manuka Farming NZ, a joint venture which involves the Hawke's Bay Regional Council and a planting programme that started at Tutira five years ago.

It is not yet clear whether the region will be represented in such things as the Rural Bachelor of the Year, as the finalists won't be named publicly until Monday, or what Hawke's Bay interest there will be in the annual agricultural innovation awards, now a significant feature of the huge rural expo which is set to mark its 50th anniversary next year.

The Make Money from Manuka Honey seminars fit the Fieldays theme of "leading change" and are expected to be a popular yet small feature of the event, which last year attracted an average of more than 30,000 people a day, with more than 1000 exhibitors sites across the expanse of land south of Hamilton. More than 40 countries were represented among the registered business visitors.

The seminars are designed for small audiences requiring pre-registration.
Manuka Farming NZ general manager Stephen Lee has brought together industry experts to provide landowners with key information to create sustainable new revenue from on-farm manuka plantations.

He said that to overcome "some misinformation" around growing manuka plantations the seminars would present some "key findings" from the High Performance Manuka Plantations Primary Growth Partnership (PGP) programme in which the regional council has been involved. There are at least 11 sites around the country, involving other partners.

Mr Lee said the seminars would give an opportunity for landowners to hear from a range of experts with whom Manuka Farming NZ works, covering the whole value chain which enables a landowner to get a good understanding of how to get money from the honey.

"The goal is to help landowners make informed decisions on how well-managed manuka plantations are used to generate positive returns from marginal land," he said.

The free seminars, include industry experts from apiculture, forestry, finance and academia backgrounds. Topics covered include how to make money from manuka honey, financial grants available and financing options, designing plantations for optimum production, de-risking the threat of diseases like myrtle rust, and ways to optimise bee health.

Manuka Farming NZ is interested in property owners or investors with more than 20ha of land, as well as hill country landowners, who could use manuka to protect erosion-prone land.

"We are in for the long haul," Mr Lee said. "With ongoing science, landowners can be assured that they will always have the latest and best knowledge, tools, and services when they work with us."

Manuka Farming NZ is the commercial arm of Manuka Research Partnership (NZ) (MRPL), a company formed in 2011 that has shareholding representing interests from the private and public sectors including Arborex Industries, Comvita NZ, DC and CY Tweeddale Partnership, Hawke's Bay Regional Council, Landcorp Farming, Nukuhau Carbon and Te Tumu Paeroa.

It provides a complete range of products and services for the evaluation, establishment, management, of, and honey harvest from, plantation manuka. These include high-performing manuka seedlings, eco-sourcing, and plantation and apiary design services.
MRPL has co-invested with the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) in the High Performance Manuka Plantations Primary Growth Partnership (PGP) programme. The programme commenced in 2011 and is scheduled for completion in late 2018. The programme set its sights on moving the industry from wild harvest to science-based farming of manuka plantations, to increase the yield and reliability of supply of medical-grade manuka honey, and contribute to what could be a $1.2 billion per annum manuka honey industry by 2028.