Hastings District Council will receive 200,000 NZD from New Zealand’s Provincial Growth Fund to develop a feasibility and
business case for the new Hawke’s Bay Food Innovation Hub.
According to a press
release by the New Zealand government, this announcement comes in light of
nearly 5.1 million in funding for earlier projects in the Hawke’s Bay region
such as the reopening of the Wairoa-to-Napier rail line and the planting of
Manuka trees to support a recirculating wetland filter in Wairoa.
“The planned Food Innovation Hub will be food
and beverage agri-tech focussed, which is an innovative way of integrating
agriculture and technology to strengthen productivity and sustainability in the
region’s primary
sector,” said Regional Economic Development
Under-Secretary Fletcher Tabuteau. “I’m excited for Hawke’s Bay that this investment will support the creation of new innovative
facilities and industries, and provide opportunities for further private sector
and investment. Ultimately this will lead to more jobs in the region.”
The
Provincial Growth Fund is a $1 billion per annum investment over three years to
ensuring regional New Zealand can thrive through productive, sustainable and
inclusive economic growth; it has 3 investment tiers
and assesses prospective projects on criteria based on four themes. The fund
will support the New Zealand government’s objective of promoting productive,
sustainable and inclusive growth by investing in regional economic development.
As announced in New
Zealand’s Budget 2018, the 1 billion NZD fund is split into 684 billion and 316
billion in operating and capital
expenditure respectively.
The 200,000 NZD grant will provide significant
financial leeway for the creation of the Food Innovation Hub. In contrast to
the grant amount, the Hastings District Council,
Napier City Council and 13 other organisations in the food and beverage
(F&B) and agricultural technology (agri-tech) sectors have contributed a
total of 35 000 NZD towards the feasibility and business case. The combined funding from various
stakeholders also underscores the Food Innovation Hub’s role in fostering
cross-industry collaboration in the Hawke’s Bay region.
"Everyone
involved is very appreciative of the support from Government to get this
project closer to reality for Hawke's Bay's food, beverage and agri-tech
industries,” said Hastings District Council Group Manager Craig Cameron.
"This is a unique opportunity to potentially establish a Food Innovation
Hub facility that will ultimately facilitate business growth and innovation,
drive investment and economic growth and create jobs."
Currently, the estimated cost of setting up the
Food Innovation Hub is approximately 20 million NZD. It is expected that
further funding from the Provincial Growth Fund will be required as the project
advances on to later phases. The next phase of the project is scheduled to be
completed between October to November this year.
Conceived with a focus on F&B and agri-tech
research, the Hawke’s Bay Food Innovation Hub will provide a platform for
private enterprises to collaborate with public research institutes on a wide
array of issues such as Big Data for agribusiness, bio-science and food
production-specific cybersecurity; research outcomes at the Food Innovation Hub
will facilitate business growth and innovation, encourage stronger investment
and create more jobs for the Hawke’s Bay region.
A
preliminary report that concluded in 2017 affirmed significant interest from
F&B enterprises, and the project is currently supported by a number of
business groups, academic institutions and government agencies such as the Food
Innovation Network (FINZ), the Wairoa District Council and the University of
Waikato. The Matariki Regional Economic
Development Strategy (REDS) Governance Group, which oversees the Hawke’s Bay
Regional Economic Development Strategy and Action Plan, has since identified
this project as a regional priority.
Earlier this year, the Provincial Growth Fund also
contributed to another feasibility study into the creation of innovation
precincts in New Zealand’s Taranaki
region. Since the launch of the fund in February 2017,
regions such as Northland and Gisborne have benefited from increased home
ownership, renewed investment and job creation.