The Kaitaia mill story

Every day, hundreds of workers clock in and out of the Juken NZ mills here in Kaitaia as they operate around the clock. Have you ever wondered how and why those mills came to be here? You might think that they are the result solely of government and industry leaders’ efforts, or that JNL (Juken Nissho, as it was then) invented the original product, triboard, made by the first mill. You’d be wrong on both counts.

As one of the few survivors of that time, here is what I know.

In 1970, Petia (Bill) Welsh, of Tao Maui (Te Rarawa) and Te Uri o Tai (Rarawa/Aupouri) hapu¯, retired from a long career in the forest industry. He had started before World War II as a trainee saw doctor at the Kaitaia timber mill, working under the management of Garth Beatson and others. Forty years later, he completed his career as a senior manager and the Pacific troubleshooter for Fletchers.

On retirement, he came home with a clear message for Ma¯ori land owners; if not THE economic mainstay of Te Hiku o Te Ika in the future, forestry was going to be a major player, and there was money to be made from it. But not simply by leasing land in exchange for an annual peppercorn rental and a low stumpage at the end of the lease.

Instead, he said, the real revenue was in being part of the value chain, right from owning the land on which the trees grew through to milling, finishing and selling the timber and other end products that come from the trees. To that end, Petia persuaded the trustees and owners of six of the largest Ma¯ori landholdings in Te Hiku o Te Ika to set up the Northern Federation of Ma¯ori Trusts and Incorporations (NORFED).

The original members were Te Puna Toopu o Hokianga Trust at Mitimiti, PanguruMotuti Forest Trust, Tapuwae Incorporation, Epikauri Forest Trust at Herekino, Parengarenga B3 Trust at Te Kao, and Te Hapua 42 Incorporation (later to become Muriwhenua Incorporation).

These NORFED members then advertised their combined land holdings as being open for tender to those who met the following conditions:

■ A fair annual rental for use of the lands, to be divided on a pro rata basis amongst the land owners;

■ A commitment to build a manufacturing plant in the region capable of producing a range of wood products from the timber grown on NORFED members’ lands;

■ A commitment to reserve a 15 per cent shareholding in the plant for NORFED members to take up within a set period;

■ A commitment to train and employ a local workforce from amongst NORFED’s people.

It was a bold and visionary plan, and when the tender process was completed, NORFED had found an equally bold and visionary partner in the shape of Keith Hunt and the recently invented product, triboard.

Next week I will share how the vision unfolded.

"It was a bold and visionary plan, and when the tender process was completed, NORFED had found an equally bold and visionary partner in the shape of Keith Hunt ..."