Wairarapa farmers and allied contractors will benefit from a NZD 1.55 million loan from the Regional Infrastructure Fund to support the establishment of a new grain drying and storage facility in Carterton.
Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson said the loan will enable farmers to store up to 4000 tonnes of grain in the region instead of trucking it to Manawatu for storage.
The facility will support more than 300 workers across farming, transport, contracting and advisory services in the region.
A large locally based facility will improve costs, efficiencies, and resilience for both grain producers and local farmers who rely on the grain for stock feed.
Patterson highlighted that growers have had to store excess grain outside the region, increasing costs and reducing margins for both producers and contractors. This has been compounded by rising diesel prices, which have added to the cost of transporting grain elsewhere for storage and then back again when needed.
"This investment restores essential infrastructure and keeps more value in Wairarapa," he said.
A scalable grain-drying and storage facility is more viable and affordable for Wairarapa growers than the storage, seed-cleaning and processing facilities initially proposed.
Wairarapa farmers will benefit from a new seed-cleaning and processing facility in central Hawke’s Bay that the Government is also supporting with a NZD three million RIF loan.
The funding is subject to establishing a grower-led company to build and run the facility, providing at least NZD 800,000 in grower equity, and securing a suitable site, delivery, consenting, and financial arrangements.
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