The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / The Country

Why Jeremy Rookes sold his farm 'to pine trees'

The Country
26 Nov, 2021 12:35 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Photo / File
Photo / File

Photo / File

Central Hawke's Bay farmer Jeremy Rookes says swathes of East Coast sheep and beef land is being lost to carbon farming and he should know as he's just sold his own farm.

Although he would prefer to sell to a farmer, Rookes said the best option for his family was to let the "forestry guys" have the first look.

"Morally not ideal but financially it's been a good decision," he told The Country's Jamie Mackay.

Rookes is not the only one. He just has to stand on his farm to see his neighbours' properties being sold to forestry.

"There's 140 hectares come up today – that's up for tender – so that will go to trees.
There's two properties I'm looking at, another 1300 hectares that have gone.
There's one in Elsthorpe's just gone and obviously Wairoa and up the East Coast."

Unlock all articles by subscribing to this international offer

All-Access + BusinessDesk Weekly

Herald Premium, Viva Premium, The Listener & BusinessDesk
Pay just
$10
$2
per week
See all offers
Already a subscriber? Sign in here
Or
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Although he admitted "money talks" Rookes blamed the sales on Government policy.

He said the land price per hectare had gone up nearly 30 per cent since he sold his farm just over two months ago.

"That's purely because of that latest carbon auction.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"The reality is that Government policy is dictating what's happening."

Listen below:

He said the recommendations from Climate Change Minister James Shaw's recent trip to COP26 highlighted the "absurdity" of the situation.

"He comes back saying we have to buy foreign carbon credits to offset our emissions when we're selling our land to foreigners to offset their emissions and we're going to pay them for it. It's absolutely nuts."

Discover more

New Zealand|politics

Jacinda Ardern on Groundswell, Soper and those press conferences

24 Nov 12:45 AM

Opinion: Carbon farming - a poem for the PM

23 Nov 12:30 AM

Dr Jacqueline Rowarth: The problem with promises at COP26

22 Nov 12:15 AM
Kahu

Couple set up schoolhouse gym in coal country

23 Nov 09:45 PM

Rookes said the Government needed to recognise that sheep and beef farming was "carbon neutral at worst" and pull back.

"Over 90 per cent of the East Coast farms for sale this spring and autumn will go into pine trees," he claimed.

Rookes and his family are moving back to Canterbury to continue farming.

He was concerned for the future of farming in the North Island.

"We want to stay in farming but boy I shudder, particularly for the North Island, because we really like this farm but the reality is we knew … the forestry guys were going to come over the farm regardless of whether we tarted it up or not.

"So that was our conscious decision to go well, let's get them in first. If they want to buy it they do, if they don't they don't and then in the spring we would have gone on and just offered it to farmers."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save
    Share this article

Latest from Listen

The Country

The Country: Farming, footy and the Bledisloe Cup

23 Sep 02:23 AM
The Country

Hayley Gourley talks OCR on The Country

22 Sep 02:36 AM
The Country

The Country: Alliance Group’s $250m rescue plan

19 Sep 02:26 AM

Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Recommended for you

Antifa: Who are they and is there an overall group?
World

Antifa: Who are they and is there an overall group?

23 Sep 02:09 AM
Site of New World gutted by fire stands bare as rebuild plans take shape
New Zealand

Site of New World gutted by fire stands bare as rebuild plans take shape

23 Sep 02:09 AM
Mum of children discovered dead in suitcases found guilty of murder after chilling trial
Auckland

Mum of children discovered dead in suitcases found guilty of murder after chilling trial

23 Sep 02:07 AM
'Broken': Sick leave entitlement for part-time work scrapped in Govt's Holidays Act reform
Politics

'Broken': Sick leave entitlement for part-time work scrapped in Govt's Holidays Act reform

23 Sep 02:03 AM
Sweet rewards: Easy recipes to keep kids busy in the holidays
New Zealand

Sweet rewards: Easy recipes to keep kids busy in the holidays

23 Sep 01:41 AM
Dog that attacked two cops held in pound as incident investigated
Rotorua Daily Post

Dog that attacked two cops held in pound as incident investigated

23 Sep 01:33 AM


Latest from Listen

The Country: Farming, footy and the Bledisloe Cup
The Country

The Country: Farming, footy and the Bledisloe Cup

Ben Picton, Chris Webb, Rob Penney and Susan Harris.

23 Sep 02:23 AM
Hayley Gourley talks OCR on The Country
The Country

Hayley Gourley talks OCR on The Country

22 Sep 02:36 AM
The Country: Alliance Group’s $250m rescue plan
The Country

The Country: Alliance Group’s $250m rescue plan

19 Sep 02:26 AM


Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable
Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
All-Access. All in one subscription.
Subscribe now

All-Access + BusinessDesk Weekly

Pay just
$10
$2
per week
Subscribe now
BEST VALUE

All-Access + BusinessDesk Annual

Pay just
$349
$49
per year
Subscribe now
Learn more
30
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search