The Tōrea Orchard development in Mid-Canterbury, New Zealand, is expected to produce 116 million apples annually from 900,000 trees once fully developed.
The project is owned by the NZ Superannuation Fund and managed by FarmRight, which oversees the fund's horticulture and dairy assets.
The orchard is being established on a former 1,200-cow dairy farm at Pendarves, south of Rakaia. Within the 460-hectare property, 125 hectares are initially being planted with Rockit apples and 125 hectares with Joli apples. The first commercial harvest is expected in 2028.
FarmRight general manager Ed Tapp said the company selected Canterbury to diversify both location and varieties within its portfolio. Once complete, FarmRight will manage 530 hectares of apple production, with additional orchards located mainly in Nelson and Hawke's Bay.
"We ended up with this property, not because we wanted to go out and convert a dairy farm, but we wanted the best land to convert into an orchard," Tapp said.
According to Tapp, the site offers growing degree days, lower frost risk due to its coastal location, groundwater access, and soil suited to apple production.
The orchard conversion, including worker accommodation, is expected to cost around NZ$120 million (US$71.3 million). A section of the property will remain as a 600-cow dairy unit.
Tapp said the project aims to operate among the top 5% of New Zealand apple growers through the use of high-value varieties, infrastructure, and mechanisation.
Rockit apples are licensed by Rockit Apple Ltd and Joli by T&G Global. Tapp said the Rockit licence cost was NZ$100,000 (US$59,400) per hectare.
"There's no guarantee around price. The big thing that we need to do is produce the quality fruit that they can then sell," he said.
Orchard manager Matt Bentley said the orchard uses a Vee trellis system rather than a single vertical axis system to increase linear metres per hectare. The system includes 18 fruiting wires per row and is designed to produce up to 100 tons per hectare.
Bentley said 27,000 galvanised steel Vee assemblies were installed across the first 150 hectares. Hail protection nets, twin drip irrigation lines, mobile harvesting platforms, and multi-row spray systems are also being introduced.
Labour remains a key challenge, with nearly 200 workers required during peak periods. A 100-bed RSE accommodation facility is under construction on site.
The orchard conversion is also projected to reduce environmental impacts, including an 81% reduction in carbon emissions, 82% lower nitrogen losses, and 40% lower irrigation water use.
Source: Rural News Group
