| 79 Improving soil health, sustainability, key Karen Phelps Sustainability has been at the heart of Centaland since it was founded. “Our sustainability journey has been something of a natural progression,” explains Centaland business development manager Dillon Senior. “As we manufactured bark grades, mulch, and compost for our landscape supply business we were redirecting natural waste products from timber and food processing industries that were otherwise destined for land lls. This passion for sustainability, protecting soil, and improving soil health has carried through into each sector we have grown into, with landscape, viticulture, rural and environmental making up the four pillars of the company.” Based in Marlborough, Centaland was founded by Dillon’s father Geoff, who still owns the company and works alongside his family and valued staff. A builder by trade Geoff started Centaland in 1990 as a landscaping supply company and has grown into a diverse operation with products and services around the top of South Island. With the strong growth in the Marlborough viticulture industry, Centaland has innovated to support the industry’s sustainability efforts through residue management, spreading, compost, and fertiliser supply. On tackling the large issue of grape marc – a by-product of the wine making process – Centaland came up with a residue management solution. “It’s about providing a multi-faceted approach for the marc waste issue with trusted sustainable solutions so our clients can focus on making great wine.” One example is the company’s innovative grape marc spreaders, that it designed and built, to spread the marc back under the vine at a speci c depth. “This adds, or rather returns, value taken from harvested fruit. It is simple to operate and also has high output to deal with peak harvest volumes,” says Dillon. Centaland is looking to provide this as a turnkey service this coming vintage, with the option to hire the spreaders still available to clients who have RURAL SERVICES » Centaland Holdings Centaland supports the booming Marlborough viticulture industry through residue management, spreading, compost, and fertiliser supply. staff on hand. Centaland’s compost supply and spreading operation was its stepping stone into the viticulture industry and is well proven to improve soil and vine health while being sustainable to produce. This has grown into fertiliser spreading as well with two spreader trucks supported by its transport eet. “Variable rate spreading is something we have been spearheading in the region,” says Dillon, “to promote better optimisation of inputs, which means soil each area of a block receives the correct fertiliser rate for the soil needs. This results in less fertiliser required meaning fewer costs, better yields, and environmental improvements at no extra spreading cost.” Centaland has recently purchased a local business called Fusion Fertiliser from Tim Laverack, a well-respected local soil consultant, who also oversees the management of many hectares of various blocks around Marlborough. Striving to make more informed and sustainable nutrient options available, and improving crop health from the ground up is something that both Tim and Geoff are passionate about, says Dillon. “This made the combination of experience, skills and equipment of the two companies, a natural t.” With a deep interest in the nely tuned balance of microbiology, Dillon says that Tim and the team enjoy working with growers to provide tailored and targeted soil health management plans. Following this, they create block-speci c fertiliser blends to enhance soil structure, nutrient cycling, and reduced leaching leading to crop resilience and productivity. “This improves nutrient options for growers and farmers who want to take an approach using more natural products that are slower to release and that aim to feed the soil, rather than relying on highly soluble products, designed simply to feed the crop. “This is softer on the soil and the environment as a whole. It’s an approach that is more natural by building up soil carbon and microbial activity, resulting in healthier soils and more sustainable outcomes long term.” Centaland has recently purchased local business Fusion Fertiliser from Tim Laverack, (above) a well-respected local soil consultant. • Budgeting • Cashflow Forecasting • Management Reporting • Succession Planning • Strategic Planning • Annual Financial Accounts • Bookkeeping & Payroll • Taxation Planning • Systems & Processes • And more... 178 Middle Renwick Rd, Blenheim / mck.co.nz / 03 928 4948 Proudly supporting Centaland MCK - Enhancing lifestyles by helping you sleep at night. Dream big again!
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDc2Mzg=