46 | RURAL PEOPLE » Ngati Whakaue Tribal Lands Truffles form part Ngati Whakaue Tribal Lands (NWTL) owns 3,000 hectares of land surrounding the Rotorua township of which 1,800 hectares is part of three sheep and beef stations. 1000 hectares in forestry, small parcels of land under lease and the balance in conservation planting. Richard Knowler The genesis of Ngati Whakaue Tribal Lands Inc. stems back over sixty years and the amalgamation of 34 Maori land blocks in Rotorua held by Ngati Whakaue descendants, and was formed to farm the lands. The Incorporation owns 3,000 hectares of land surrounding the Rotorua township of which 1,800 hectares is part of three sheep and beef stations, 1000 hectares in forestry, small parcels of land under lease and the balance in conservation planting. General Manager Ray Morrison says while farming remains Ngati Whakaue’s core business, it is an evolving space and the Committee of Management is about optimising the value of the land allocation. “We’re always going to be farmers but we’re looking at maximising our income on every hectare as best we can, be it pastoral farmland, forestry, housing, truffles, or any other land use option that aligns with our values” Wharenui is the largest of the three farms run by the Incorporation and is located on the eastern boundary of Rotorua. The total land area is 1561.5ha of which 1126ha is farmed, 319.8ha is in productive forestry and 95.6 is in riparian planting, and native trees. Tihiotonga is located on the southern boundary of Rotorua City. The total land area is 818.4ha of which 665 hectares are farmed and 90ha is in production forestry, with 45ha in riparian planting and native trees. Ngongotaha, the smallest of the farms, is located on the western boundary of Rotorua City. The total land area is 586ha of which 320ha are farmed, 127ha is in production forest, with 128ha in riparian planting and native trees. In previous years the farm operations have been contracted to a farm consultancy, with block managers executing farm plans on a day-to-day basis. Last year, Ngati Whakaue Tribal Lands Inc. changed to a different model, promoting one of the senior block managers to operations manager with full control of the farm budget, and the three farms managed by the remaining two block managers. Ray says this change was partly driven by operational efficiency, and also in response to changing land use that has seen reductions in hectares used for pastoral farming operations. In 1970 106ha of neighbouring land zoned for general use was purchased and utilised as part of the farmland, retaining the same general zone status. Four years ago, Ngati Whakaue Tribal Lands Inc. made the decision to embark on a residential housing development, by taking the 106ha out of the farming business. “That 106 hectares equates to thirteen hundred house lots, which equate to some twenty-five years of housing supply for Rotorua, and generating long term future income for the incorporation. In 2017 the decision was also made to increase our plantation forestry from 300 hectares to 1000 hectares on land that was quite marginal grazing both distance wise for the cattle and terrain wise. We decided to target 1,000 hectares on the basis that it will provide a 20 to 25 hectare annual production harvest, at maturity.” In 2007, Ngati Whakaue Tribal Lands Inc. also decided to look at truffles and planted a 10ha truffière in a reasonably flat part of the Wharenui block, which had been an apple and citrus orchard. “We had to identify the right trees,” says Ray. “Truffles either grow on hazelnut or oak trees, and to be honest it was a suck it and see situation for us. We thought the oak species would be better suited to the volcanic soils and our climate. As it turns out there were a number of reasons why oak was the best species to use. We’re producing Perigord Black Truffles (Tuber Melanosporum), which are now proving to be well suited to the Rotorua soils and climate. As it stands now, Ngati Whakaue is one of the largest truffières in New Zealand.” The truffière produced its first very small yield three years ago, but the yield has steadily grown both in quantity and quality. “Each annual harvest we GPS everything and each year we find the same areas are producing truffles but in bigger numbers. We did a truffle hunt today and we found 1.4kgs out of the ground in an hour. We’re only at the start of the journey, and really it’s a watch this space. The whole reason that we went down the path of truffles is that Ngati Whakaue are always looking, to innovate, and always has.” “We’re producing Perigord Black Truffles (Tuber Melanosporum), which are now proving to be well suited to the Rotorua soils and climate. As it stands now, Ngati Whakaue is one of the largest truffières in New Zealand.” • Large scale earthworks • Full residential and commercial development • Farmmaintenance and development • Sand supply and delivery • Covering the Waikato and Bay of Plenty 0800 4UI DIG (484 344) www.mcphersoncontractors.co.nz
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDc2Mzg=