Processors Marketers

There is little point growing produce to a market requirement without ensuring the ability to capitalise the maximum return. Biological / organic farming without certification has little opportunity to give added value outside the farm gate. The point of certified organic production is to follow this all the way to the consumer. The acceptance of certified organic across the world is a huge benefit to individual farmers/growers.

There have been operations in the past that had kiwifruit certified on the vine. The grower had not shown any harvest or post harvest accountability. As soon as the kiwifruit was picked it was no longer organic as far as the market place was concerned and would attract no premium.

Every step of the production, transporting, processing and marketing has to be seen to maintain the integrity of the product produced on the farm. This is what the discerning high value market is willing to pay for!

This may sound hard but in reality it is not so. Transport and processing units need to be cleaned under standard operation anyway. It is common to have a processing plant put certified organic product through as the first run after a clean down, this maintains the integrity of the certified product. Its packaging is important again to ensure that the product arrives at the consumer point of purchase without the opportunity to be contaminated or mixed up with non-organic product. This is no different to any specialty product.

It comes down to integrity through transparency, and if this integrity is maintained a premium will flow all the way back to the farmer/grower, if it is lost for some reason it still has the potential of non-organic returns in the market place.

So who is processing and marketing certified organic product around the world? There are historically some new innovative growers who have processed their own produce; there are some new and innovative processors who have capitalised on opportunity. Phoenix Foods is a good example of this, starting with a small stainless steel vat making ginger beer to a company that sold to Charlie’s Juices for around $10m.
For the larger sectors it is traditionally the existing processors/marketers that have the capital infrastructure, the marketplace links, knowledge and the fiscal capacity to support and grow the organic primary sector. We look back at the likes of Watties in the late 1980’s, the Kiwifruit  Marketing Board(later Zespri) in the early 1990's. Affco certified meat plants in the 1980’s and couldn’t get stock to kill---they had the markets—not the stock.

We see today the dairy sector aiming at export with Fonterra driving for hundreds of farms, and new players such as the NZ Organic Dairy Farmers Cooperative LTD seeking supply. Alliance processing meat and companies like Wallace Harmony who have evolved through takeovers from a one man butchery in the 1980’s to a significant player in driving the organic meat sector ahead both domestically and internationally.
So who do you contact to find out more about your opportunities---the best place would be your existing contacts, most of the processors/marketers now have organic opportunity in their portfolio. If you wish to make an informed choice at a time of change contact some or all of those listed below. Be sure to check the certification credentials with the relevant certifiers.

The list here is not complete but if you use the links to the AsureQuality and BioGro websites at the bottom you may find more; inside the members area there is more detail and background on processors and marketers.

General list.

Asure Quality certified processors and handlers. at this link click on the required list and an excel sheet will open--then select the tab required.

BioGro certified processors and handlers, a search aspect applies.

Dairy processing/marketing;

The New Zealand Organic Dairy Farmers Cooperative Ltd,
No longer trading.


Fonterra Co-operative Group Limited
Fonterra Milk Supply
PO Box 20261 Hamilton
12-14 Pukete Road
Te Rapa Hamilton
DD: +64 7 850 9794
Stuart.Luxton@Fonterra.com

Green Valley Dairies Ltd.
206 Bell Road,
Mangatawhiri,
RD1, Pokeno
https://www.gvd.co.nz/

Waiu Dairy

1 Tamaoho Drive,
Kawerau 3192,
New Zealand

admin@waiudairy.co.nz
+64 7 323 6121

https://www.waiudairy.com/

Organic Dairy Hub Co-operative NZ Ltd.

http://www.organicdairyhub.co.nz/

Open Country Dairy Ltd

https://www.opencountryorganics.co.nz/

Blue River Dairy Products Ltd
Rob Sinclair
111 Nith Street
Invercargill

Meat processing/ marketing;

CMP Canterbury Ltd
PO Box 101,
Ashburton

CMP Kokiri Ltd
Private Bag 605,
Greymouth

CMP Rangitikei
State Highway 1,
RD1 Greatford,

Alliance Group Ltd -
Smithfeild
PO BOX 30,
Timaru

Alliance Group Ltd
PO Box 845,
Invercargill

Alliance Group Ltd
Pukeuri
Private Bag 50051,
Oamaru

Lean Meats Oamaru Ltd
PO Box 50
Oamaru

Silver Fern Farms
PO Box 21,
Takapau 4243

Silver Fern Farms Limited
Gordon Mounsey
Yorston Road
Balclutha
Southland

Neat Meats Ltd (Harmony Meats.)

NeatMeat

T 09 309 1081

F 09 309 7655

dave@neatmeat.com

Taylor Preston Ltd
David Walkinshaw
Ngauranga Gorge
Wellington

Wool

BLOCH & BEHRENS WOOL (NZ) LTD
An Operating Subsidiary of Wool Partners International Ltd.
Palle Petersen
Gerard de Rooy
P.O. Box 19955
Christchurch,
New Zealand
Phone: +64 3 98 20 111
Fax: +64 3 98 20 117
E-Mail:


This list is an indication only, for a complete list check with certifiers.

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