YOUR INDUSTRY
WEATHER BOMB HIGHLIGHTS THE NEED TO FOCUS ON FUTURE OF FARMING Words by Kristine Walsh
Steel framing for LeaderBrand‘s new greenhouse has arrived and the first poles have been installed
Increasing competitiveness in the domestic market and the goal of reducing environmental footprints will be key for farming in the future, says LeaderBrand chief executive Richard Burke. So too will be the need to adapt and innovate as climate change impacts the way we farm. This reality was reinforced in the first week of November, when the heavens opened. MetService recorded 174 millimetres of rain, nearly three times the average for November, at its Gisborne Airport site in the 36 hours leading up to 4pm on 4 November. A state of emergency was declared and paddocks around the region were flooded. As the mop up began, Richard said damage from the storm would have short-term impacts on LeaderBrand‘s spinach and rocket crops and could lead to supply gaps for corn early in the New Year. “It was not the worst storm we’ve seen but weather events like that are becoming more frequent as the country’s climate continues to be impacted,” Richard says. “Monitoring weather is a daily practice for us and we’re continuously looking to mitigate negative impacts where possible. We’re also extremely lucky to be able to distribute our crop supply across our multiple farms growing across the country.”
As well as growing 300 hectares of Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Gewürztraminer grapes, LeaderBrand is the largest broccoli grower in New Zealand; is a big exporter of squash and processed sweetcorn; grows tomatoes for processing; and supplies about a third of the country‘s bagged salad products. The company employs around 450 permanent staff, plus an extra 150 seasonal workers during the harvest. With farms in the South Island, Matamata and Pukekohe, LeaderBrand was able to increase production at its other farms to secure supplies of spinach, broccoli and lettuce in the weeks after the storm. However, had there not been pandemic-related delays to the construction of its massive greenhouse development at Makauri, the weather bomb would have been easier to manage. “We know agricultural practices are going to have to adapt to the country’s increasingly variable climate and we hope our new greenhouse will ensure that big weather events of the future won’t be as destructive as this was,” Richard says. “If we’d had the greenhouse built already, that shelter would have saved everything under cover, and we wouldn’t have lost as many crops as we did. “It will be a massive change to the way we farm but we think that this style of farming will be the way of the future. Adapting and changing is our only way forward to ensure NZGROWER : DECEMBER 2021 13
