12 | restaurant trade, and during the summer season, corn, melons, pumpkin, zucchini, eggplant, and peppers are also grown. Diversification is an essential aspect of the business, with the O’Connors spreading the financial risk of things like adverse weather events or national overproduction by not just relying on one crop. Also essential to the business are the local Thai and Myanmar communities who make up a large proportion of the Appleby Fresh workforce. “This business would struggle without our Asian communities,” Mark says. “While the Government wants to import people for highly paid roles, what we really need is people at ground level who are prepared to show up to work every day and work hard.” While this situation might still be under development, another essential part of Appleby Fresh and all the other farmers and growers on the Waimea Plains is now partly operational and an absolute lifeline for production. The recently commissioned Waimea Community Dam started releasing water in February and is set to keep growers growing during this, one of the driest years in history on the Waimea Plains. “I’m not saying there will be more production on the plains, but the dam gives us security in the dry periods,” Mark says. “I talk to a lot of growers outside our area and the one thing they always say is they wish they had certainty of water. This dam is a game changer, and there needs to be more dams built and more water augmentation across the country. Guaranteed water means guaranteed jobs.” While Appleby Fresh pays an expensive per hectare rate to take water from the dam, other locals who aren’t growers continue to benefit with the ability to water their gardens and wash their cars with no water restrictions, all because of the Waimea Community Dam. As vegetable growers across the South Island contribute fresh and healthy produce and create employment opportunities at all levels and across all businesses that support the sector, their margins are under threat from rising costs and low price points. “One of our biggest challenges at the moment is to get the price of vegetables up, and its going to be difficult,” Mark says. “We’ve had a good year down south because of the weather events in the North Island. We’ve had good growing conditions and everybody has planted more to catch up from last year, so we have an oversupply situation. We are sending a lot of items out below the cost of production.” Interest rates hikes have taken a fair chunk out of people’s wage packets and consumers are out there looking for specials. “We get it,” Mark says. “Inflation stops the merry-go-round. We’ve stopped a lot of our spending and it means some of our suppliers won’t get anything this year. We need to get inflation down and interest rates down.” Waimea Dam gamechanger for grower On 180ha, Appleby Fresh produces more than 30 different types of vegetables. Kelly Deeks At Appleby near Richmond on the Waimea Plains, Appleby Fresh is a large market gardening company growing, harvesting, packing, and dispatching a wide range of nutritious vegetables all over New Zealand, all year round. The home farm has been in the family for five generations and was converted from a sheep farm by its current owners’ grandparents. The business is now owned by three brothers, Michael, Mark, and Brendan O’Connor. Both Michael and Mark are actively involved in the daily management of the business, and Mark’s two sons also hold leadership roles. On 180ha, Appleby Fresh produces more than 30 different types of vegetables, specialising in green crops including cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, leeks, and spinach. A few niche crops such as kale, celeriac, and fennel are grown, mainly to supply the Email: alastair@cooltranz.co.nz | Phone: 021 826 384 | Web: www.CoolTranz.co.nz Proud to support Appleby Fresh We specialise in the temperature controlled transportation of produce and food grade products around New Zealand. HORTICULTURE » Appleby Fresh
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDc2Mzg=