Local produce in demand
While jobs are being lost around New Zealand amid the coronavirus lockdown, food producers are busier than ever – with some Taranaki companies hiring staff to keep up with demand.
Five people who had been laid off in related industries have been employed at Green Meadows Beef, managing director Nick Carey said.
The company, which supplies its New Plymouth processing plant from its Opunake farm, is still processing orders for supermarkets, export and home delivery customers but has closed its retail shop in the city.
It has been approved as an essential business and the factory is operating seven days a week in three separate shifts.
‘‘We have hired five additional casual staff and that is in response to demand and also to enable us to split shifts to maintain distance and enable us to carry on if any one shift is impacted,’’ Carey said.
‘‘That is the thing I am most happy with, that I am able to keep our existing staff employed through this unsettling time but also help five other families to get through.’’
He said the company’s staff were doing a fantastic job under difficult circumstances.
Egmont Honey is another business that is booming; it is actively advertising for two beekeepers to meet international demand for manuka honey but interviews will not be held until after the lockdown ends.
Demand from within New Zealand
and abroad had soared, company founder and chief executive James Annabell said, partly because of panic buying and partly because ‘‘manuka honey is something many people perceive as very good for their immunity’’.
The company started selling through health retailer Holland and Barrett about two months ago, and sales were exceeding all their forecasts, he said.
The Bell Block factory where the honey is processed and packed is working at capacity.
Some of the beekeeping team had been stood down while a skeleton crew carried on working out at hive sites but this was to ensure there were staff available if anyone gets sick.
The only jobs affected by the lockdown were two people who worked in the retail shop in New Plymouth, which is closed.
Meanwhile, demand for fresh produce has boosted demand for two growers in New Plymouth.
Omata grower Jodi Roebuck said retail sales of fresh produce had ‘‘ramped up 1000 per cent’’ due to the coronavirus, although the amount he was selling to restaurants and cafes had markedly diminished.
‘‘It is like Christmas every day of the week,’’ he said.
Freeman Farms in New Plymouth launched vegetable box deliveries last week, due to the demand at its Farmers Market stall and from other sales, Kati Freeman said.