As Aotearoa considers its agricultural future, it seems that genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) are finally about to enter our soils. Up until now, GMO’s and gene editing have been banned in New Zealand. Mangaroa Farms shares a range of reasons why GMO's could be a problem for NZ

As we look towards the future of Mangaroa Farms, we want to take a moment to honour someone who has been an integral part of our journey—Jules Matthews

Mangaroa Farms will be featured on Country Calendar tomorrow night, New Zealand’s longest running and highest-rated television series, celebrating rural life and land. Country Calendar is an iconic institution, so it feels like we’re getting our five minutes of fame.

I haven’t seen the episode yet, but first and foremost, I hope it portrays the farm transformation that Jules Matthews led in her three years as the Mangaroa farm manager. Starting with a more conventional dairy block and some worn down infrastructure, Jules brought in a regenerative agriculture lens and playbook - with a focus on soil, water, and living systems - and has helped Mangaroa / Whitemans Valley establish a thriving local food hub, with robust market gardens, a Kete Kai farm shop, healthy and delicious cows and sheep, significant riparian restoration, and much greater community resilience. 
Watching this transformation gives me hope that we can quickly evolve agriculture and build bioregional food systems, especially with the right mindsets, gumption, and bit of luck.

We are looking forward to being featured on Hyundai Country Calendar this Sunday 21st July - at 7pm on TV1 🙌🏽💚

https://www.tvnz.co.nz/shows/country-calendar

This week marks the passing of the winter solstice, and the rising of the Matariki star cluster

This Friday 28th June, the Farm Shop / Kete Kai will be closed, as we take a pause to honour a remembrance of the past, celebration of the present, and preparing for the future.

The 2024 theme is “Matariki heri kai” - The feast of Matariki.

From Mānawatia a Matariki

This comes from the Māori proverb ‘Matariki whetū heri kai’ meaning ‘Matariki, the bringer of food’.

Kai is central to the celebration of Matariki, and Māori believe that the appearance of Matariki in the morning sky in winter would determine the success or failure of kai harvesting.

Different stars in the cluster have an association to the various domains from where we source our kai, in particular:
- gardens (Tupuānuku)

- forests (Tupuārangi)

- fresh water (Waitī) and

- the ocean (Waitā)
This connection reaffirms relationships with our environment and signifies the importance of food in the celebration of Matariki - a time to journey home, spend time with whānau and friends, and enjoy feasting on fresh, locally sourced produce

Follow Living by The Stars with Professor Rangi Matamua & Mānawatia a Matariki for more.

We are excited to announce that our organically grown & regeneratively raised frozen beef & lamb will available for delivery online very soon 🥩🙌🏽📦❄️

https://lnkd.in/ggzdAiTy

We had a successful weekend recently with our team of local volunteers planting over 200 trees alongside our local crew from Forest and Bird - Upper Hutt.

Jan Hania

Pest Free Upper Hutt's

To celebrate Organic Week 2024, we're hosting a garden tour, and also co-hosting a screening of reknowned documentary Six Inches of Soil.

Our beloved Weekly $35 Vege Bag is retiring

  A massive thank you to all our weekly subscribers for their continued support in our CSA (community supported agriculture) styled weekly vege bag food model.

In the past 2 years we have sold over 1100 of these bags of goodness to our local community - consisting of 7-8+ seasonal, organically grown produce, and holding its place as a foundational chapter of our history and market garden / food hub journey.

We're looking for an inspired and empowered individual to join our Mangaroa Farms team, and take our Farm Shop / Kete Kai to the next level.

Role Description:

In this diverse and unique role, you will:

• Oversee daily operations of our retail presence, both online and in-store

• Lead our Farm Shop / Kete Kai team,

• Drive sales and customer service excellence

• Collaborate with marketing and garden teams,

• Manage software & inventory systems,

• Ensure compliance with health and safety standards

• Expand and grow our retail opportunities in local and national scales

What we're looking for:

An entrepreneurial leader to oversee and apply business acumen to our daily operations -with strong business management and retail experience, preferably in organic or horticultural sales, and a passion for regenerative agriculture.

Key Attributes:

• Entrepreneurial mindset

• Excellent communication skills

• Analytical thinking

• Project management capabilities

• Commitment to lifelong learning

• Ability to work well with a team

Experience Required:

• 5+ years in relevant retail sales, including team leadership and financial management

• Degree not essential; however qualifications in Horticulture/Sales/Operations is beneficial
  

More information here: https://mangaroa.org/pages/retail-lead-application

Apply here: https://airtable.com/applELai85mtj03oW/pagRaUsTVlAvAa94B/form

Mangaroa Farms is looking at becoming a "collection depot" for Three Oaks Organics Raw Milk customers in the Upper Hutt region.

You can leave your expression of interest here:

This future service will be operated by Three Oaks Organics via their website, and picked up by the customer at Mangaroa Farms - more details below. We can proceed with this service if we reach a minimum order of bottles weekly.

You can learn more about the process here: https://www.threeoaksorganic.co.nz/how-it-works/

Join us for the annual Mangaroa Open Farms day on Sunday 10th March from 10am - 3pm for a variety of garden tours, planting & livestock demos, games & activities for kids, and perhaps most exciting - a locally produced lunch, with our smoked Mangaroa Farms lamb & fresh salad rolls + vegetarian options & more.

We will also be drawing 2x raffle prize packs, both to the value of $300+ each. You can purchase a ticket online, or on the day.

BUY A RAFFLE TICKET HERE

EVENT TIMELINE
Arrive from 9:30am and do a self-guided tour, or attend one of our guided tours limited to 30x people - first come, first served.

9:30am - Gates & shop open
10am - 10:45am: Guided market garden tour #1
11am - 11:45am: Guided market garden tour #2
11:30am: Rolling lunch is served
1pm - 1:45pm: Guided market garden tour #3
2pm - 2:45pm: Guided market garden tour #4
3pm - Farm Raffle Draw & Event Closes
5pm - Farm Shop / Kete Kai Closes

RSVP at the Facebook event here:

The Mangaroa Honesty fridge is our investment in building local trust based systems by giving our community the chance to access quality organically grown kai at any time of the day

Visit the honesty fridge and pay with cash or bank transfer using our free wifi on the spot.

108 Whitemans Valley Road, Upper Hutt

The Verdi team just wrapped up baseline soil testing at Mangaroa Farms, diving deep into soil health and carbon levels.

View the photo album here.

Over two days, they extracted numerous one-metre deep soil cores, alongside crucial observational data, leaving Mangaroa with just under 100kgs of soil for analysis.

The Verdi Baseline Test is all about setting the stage for sustainable growth. They are establishing a benchmark to monitor soil health and carbon levels accurately

Why does it matter?

Because understanding soil carbon and nutrient levels is crucial for fostering a healthy, sustainable environment.

The Verdi team plans to return in year 3, ensuring we can continue to make significant strides in reducing our carbon footprint and actively capturing carbon.

By year 5, they’ll measure the outcomes, transforming carbon gains into verified credentials.

Farmers and growers aren’t the villains; they’re the heroes in the environmental story. Every day, we need them - 3x a day. They hold the key to reducing emissions for the entire supply chain.

By channelling resources toward sequestration, especially into soils, collectively farmers can work towards crafting the greatest societal benefit, and making a lasting impact for future generations.

Thanks to Sam & the Verdi team for the awesome mahi and analysis

Late last year, our team had the privilege of joining Dr Jessica Hutchings and her wife Jo for a kai at her place over the hill near Kaitoke, and receive an introduction to the Hua Parakore Māori Organics framework.

We are stoked to have our vision for Mangaroa Farms & regenerative agriculture featured on NewsHub recently.

Welcome to the Mangaroa Farm Shop / Kete Kai, hosting a range of organically produce & meats grown, grazed and harvested right on our doorstep.

You can visit our shop during the hours below.

Wednesdays 11am - 5pm

📍 98 Whitemans Valley Road, Upper Hutt

Find us on Sundays 8am - 2pm at Brewtown Farmer's Market in Upper Hutt.

Our Honesty Fridge is open next door to the shop 24/7 at 108 Whitemans Valley Road.

Kia ora,

Welcome to the Mangaroa Farms Newsletter, featuring updates from our local ecosystem.

As the seasons have well and truly shifted to Spring, we are finding the soil is getting drier, and the longer days make for more daylight hours caring for our above & underground livestock (mycelium).

At the gardens, we've finally planted out our 6th 25m bed (see photo above), after the "chopped and dropped" cover crop had first been covered for a period of time with the black sheets.

With all the extra produce coming through, we're stoked to open the Farm Shop Kete Kai for extended hours over the Summer - see more below.

Top left in photo - there's now a new bed full of growing pumpkins for harvest next Autumn (with black mats) and a small grove of natives planted along the cottage fenceline.

We're enjoying watching growth of new trees and seedlings that have been planted in Aug - Oct, especially in riparian areas (along rivers) and to extend significant natural areas.

Big thanks to our team who have been working around the clock to keep the wheels turning of the Mangaroa Farms Food Hub & Education Centre vision.

Please find a list of our latest updates below,

In Gratitude,

The Mangaroa Farms Team