Secure Water Supply Offers Exciting Opportunities In Northland

The new Kaipara water scheme now underway offers the opportunity to tap into this Northland farm’s horticultural potential. This Te Kopuru property provides a chance to secure an investment in a green field site with secure water access for high value horticulture, offering scale and superior soil types in a highly desired location.

Learn more about how the Te Tai Tokerau water storage project will transform Northland into a horticulture hub for high value crops – www.taitokerauwater.com

Horticultural investors looking beyond the Bay of Plenty for horticultural land with scale and water security can invest in a large Northland property offering excellent growing conditions.

To date the 185ha Te Kopuru property has set a consistent benchmark for high level dairy production over the past decade where it sits in the top tier of producers, averaging 280,560kg milk-solids a year over the past five years and 270,000kg milk-solids for the decade. It is on target this year to produce 300,000kg milk-solids.

For Bayleys Northland agent Catherine Stewart, it is the property’s location to one of the Te Tai Tokerau water projects that opens up a new range of potential opportunities for purchasers of the property.

“The Te Tai Tokerau water storage project is well underway and will be delivering water to horticultural operations only, with capacity to supply 4000ha. It promises to open up this district’s full potential for growing which has exceptional soils, but has been stymied in the past by a lack of water,” she says.

The property’s north facing, flat to easy contour is underlain by high quality free draining soils that are ideally suited to avocado production, and a small area of peat country ideal for blueberry growing.

“The North is poised to become the centre for New Zealand’s horticultural sector and projects like this are going to unlock the potential it has long held,” Catherine says.

The development of the Kaipara Water Scheme only 2km from the farm as part of the Te Tai Tokerau project is well underway. When fully developed the scheme will hold 3.2 million cubic metres of water for supply.

The water supply project is being hailed as a game changer for the Dargaville area, long renowned for its potential to grow more crops on its high-quality soils, but often restrained by limited water supply.

The Poutu Peninsula development includes multiple reservoirs capable of supplying 4000ha of horticultural land.

At present, current farm owners Lana Gillett and Michael Slagter are running the dairy unit as an intensive system 5 operation.

“Being only two farms down from the irrigation reservoir puts this property in an ideal location, and its soils are superb for growing. We find the farm responds quicker than others to whatever rainfall we get over summer- the country is proven, so the opportunities with secure water next door are exciting,” says Lana.

A purchaser choosing to continue dairying would also be able to tap into the irrigation scheme to use water on the maize crop grown regularly on the farm.

The value of the location for horticulture has already been confirmed with the recent investment in land by largescale avocado company Linwood Avocado Nursery, and confirmation by a horticultural consultant about the property’s potential.

The exceptionally tidy property is also well appointed for infrastructure, including a 33 aside herringbone dairy, full fed pad and bunker facilities and consented effluent system.

Water supply is from three deep well farm bores, while access is through well-founded, packed limestone raceways to 62 paddocks defined by a high standard of internal two-wire electric fences.

The farm has two quality dwellings including a tidy three-bedroom house and an older style three-bedroom homestead set in established gardens with polished wooden floors and full insulation.

“The district has a lot of appeal for anyone looking at development, Dargaville is already recognised as the Kumara capital of New Zealand and is poised to become a key horticultural centre, and is only 15 minutes away. Whangarei is just over an hour, and both primary and secondary school options are nearby at Dargaville,” says Catherine.

As horticultural land prices surge upwards in more established districts the appeal of the Dargaville district has increased recently, with water security the key to future productivity.

“We are really excited to have a property like this which offers so much potential, and can deliver some real gains through development to this region in one of the biggest infrastructure projects the district has ever seen,” says Catherine.

The property is available for sale through auction on December 1. Interested parties can contact Catherine Stewart on (027) 356 5031.

Click here for more information on the listing.

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