Austrian countess wants farm to become forest
An Austrian aristocrat who has bought a sheep and beef farm in northern Hawke’s Bay plans to plant the property in radiata pine and name it Carlsberg Forest.
Once the property is planted in radiata pine as planned, that should make it unique as there are no other forests which carry the name Carlsberg anywhere else in the world.
Countess Veronika Leeb-goesssaurau, 55, bought the 381.9 hectare farm at Tutira for $2.2 million. After the decision was made public in February to let the countess buy the forest, the Overseas Investment Office (OIO) was asked for background information on her but the request was denied.
However, after a complaint to the Ombudsman, the OIO has supplied a censored version of its report granting consent for the sale. A lot of details have been expunged from the report, including how much land she and her family own in Austria, and how many jobs she intends to create at Carlsberg Forest. It said the property had been advertised over four months last year, but would not say how many prospective New Zealand owners viewed it. The majority were sheep and beef farmers, none of whom were interested in converting it to forestry. One was a bee keeper. The OIO estimated the farm would employ 1.7 full time equivalent (FTE) jobs if it remained a sheep and beef farm. However, it blacked out how many FTES would be created once it became a forest, and the value of the investment the countess intended to make.
The report says her family have been landowners, farmers and foresters since the 16th century. She has been ‘‘heavily’’ involved in her family’s forestry investments and has personal investments in forestry in Austria. In her application, the countess said following a visit to New Zealand in 1999-2000, she decided the country was where she wanted to set up a plantation forest. The countess’s family owns valuable forest estates and castles in Austria.