Taste your way through Horowhenua

Woodhaven Gardens.

Hundreds of people are expected to taste their way through Horowhenua tomorrow, as nine food producers open their doors to the public as part of the inaugural Horowhenua Taste Trail.

The Trail includes packhouses, factories and farms, with producers offering guided tours, tastings and samples, and food trucks whipping up bites from the locally grown and prepared produce.

Event co-organiser and spokesperson Catherine Lewis said the trail will showcase our locally-made food from the paddock to plate, or factory to supermarket.

"We've had people from across the North Island excited about the upcoming weekend ... and a number of groups travelling up from Wellington to participate in the Trail."

At each of the eight sites is a different food experience detailed in the Taste Trail Adventure Guide available online and in hard copy from Horowhenua District Council and Te Takere.

"Woodhaven Gardens will be showcasing their market garden through tractor rides and packhouse tours, so that you can see the crops in the ground, right through to them being washed and graded ready for transport.

"Cultural performances by Woodhaven staff will occur throughout the day, and there'll be a Vietnamese twist on fresh vegetables through Saigon Corner and the Mexican food of Antojito's food trucks available."

She said it is the first time some producers were opening their doors to the public, including Levin Eel Trading and Genoese Pesto, both with long histories in the Horowhenua.

"They are very excited to welcome people to learn about their operations and share their stories and passion for their produce."

On the farm tour visitors have the opportunity to see cows being milked, pat calves and finish with cheese tasting and a delicious Whittaker's Iced Chocolate.

Mrs Lewis said the Horowhenua Taste Trail will demonstrate the excellent produce grown in the district.

Family-friendly and free admission. For more information go to Facebook Page @horowhenuatastetrail or www.tastetrail.co.nz (where a copy of the Taste Trail Adventure Guide is available to download).

Horowhenua Taste Trail, Saturday November 12, 10am - 4pm. Food to sample and buy at each site. Locations: RJ's Licorice, Woodhaven Gardens, Tendertips Asparagus, Ohau Wine (including Turks Poultry), Woody's Free Range Farm, Levin Eels, Takapu Farm, Genoese Pesto (including Country Treats).

Tendertips Asparagus: See the Tendertips packhouse in action as asparagus is prepared, graded and packaged. Tours available throughout the day. The Little White Rabbit Food Truck will be selling a selection of asparagus-inspired treats for you to purchase. Please wear covered footwear.

Woody's Free Range Farm: Bring the kids along and enjoy this family-friendly free-range piggy experience. Regular tours, food for sale from Dutchy's Burger Joint and entertainment for the kids on the lawn. For animal health reasons everyone will step through a foot bath before taking the farm tour, so please bring gumboots.

Levin Eel Trading Co Ltd: Have you ever tasted smoked eel? Come along and give it a try! Check out the factory and the story of how the eels are caught, processed and shipped around the world. Tours of the factory will be held approximately every hour, on the hour. You can even see the tanks of live eels! There will be smoked eel, salmon and white bait for you to purchase and take home on the day. Please wear covered footwear.

Genoese Pesto & Country Treats: Genoese will join up with Country Treats for the day, sharing their story through tours of the Genoese Factory, tastings, and selling their yummy products for you to take home. Please wear covered footwear. BABCO Woodfired Pizza will be whipping up pizzas on site.

Woodhaven Gardens: Woodhaven Gardens is a must see for all on the Taste Trail - packhouse tours and tractor rides for the kids available throughout the day, two cultural performances by Woodhaven staff (11am and 2pm), and raw Woodhaven veggies to sample. Pop-up vegetable shop with all proceeds going to Hinemoa House. Partnering with Saigon Corner for Vietnamese and Antojito's Food Truck serving up Mexican.

Ohau Wines & Turks Poultry: Bring a picnic blanket, buy a glass of wine, and enjoy the beautiful vineyard setting. There will be talks about the vineyard and the wines at 11am, 1pm and 3pm. Turks Free Range Poultry will join up with Ohau Wines for the day sharing their story with you through talks and video footage, providing free tastings of chicken cooked on the BBQ, and selling their fresh chicken products, plus Crafted and Co food truck whipping up Turks delights.

Takapu Farm: Experience a working farm on this tour of a fifth-generation family farm. Guided walking tour to see cows being milked, hear about the history of the farm as a sheep and beef farm, pat calves, and learn about the many aspects that go into running a dairy farm. Cheese tasting at the Fonterra tent and The Little Black Caravan will be making Whittaker's iced chocolates and organic coffees.

RJ's Licorice: Sample some of RJ's tasty licorice and learn about the RJ's story in Levin. Special prices on offer for the day.