34 | REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Central Hawke’s Bay: Craigmore Sustainables T T Sue Russell Once fully established the apple crop from the two orchards will extend to around 37,000 bins. Ben James is Business Manager, Apples, for Craigmore Sustainables, a New Zealand owned company that turns investment capital sourced mainly from overseas into productive horticulture, food and fibre businesses. In his role, Ben oversees two production orchards located out of Gisborne and in Central Hawkes Bay. “I’m relatively new to the role and there is still an extreme amount of strategising and building the team’s capability ahead of us, but the two orchards are coming along really well.” One of the orchards also includes a separately run Craigmore vineyard and was originally a farm. “Central Hawke’s Bay in particular has been neglected, yet it is a region with some very good soils and great communities who will benefit from land development.” Given Craigmore largely uses funds from overseas, their investment projects are subject to audit and approval by the OIO who expect projects to deliver direct economic benefits to their region. A strong philosophy of enabling and supporting regional growth underpins the operation and the types of projects the company gets involved in, as Ben explains. “Craigmore Sustainables invests in businesses controlled by New Zealanders and employing those living locally. Currently I have a team of 30 but plans ahead are to increase that number to 45.” During the peak picking season the number swells to 140. Accommodation units are being purposely built in Central Hawkes Bay to future-proof the operation. Pickers workacross apples, grapes and kiwifruit, providing them with security of work for longer periods. From his experience Ben knows that consistent employment is key to creating meaningful life-long change for those living in areas where there are fewer opportunities to work full-time. “A regular pay-check, being able to service debt enables people to make plans, grow careers and enjoy a more fulfilling life and that is why we place sustainability and investment in people as a priority.” Both Orchards are still waiting to produce fruit with the 136ha Central Hawke’s Bay site coming on-stream this year , while the Gisborne orchard of 33ha has only just completed planting this year. Once fully established, the apple crop will extend to approx. 37,000 bins of apples across the orchards. Supporting regional growth
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