Māori land, cultural values and food production Dr Tanira Kingi Presented at the Rural Futures: Meeting policy and market challenges Conference, September , AgResearch, Ruakura, Hamilton

Tanira Kingi Slide 2 Outline 1. Background – Māori land and Māori contribution to primary industry 2. Cultural values and food 3. Māori branding 4. Case study: Organic beef production in Northland

Tanira Kingi Slide 3 Māori people and land 1. 15% of population 2. Collectively own around 6% of total land area (1.5m ha) 3. Ancestral lands owned by family or clan groups

Tanira Kingi Slide 4 Land tenure and structures 1. Māori Land Act, 1993 – 2. Individuals registered against Certificates of Title 3. Restricted alienation 4. The need for governance and management structures - Incorporations (129) - Trusts (>5000)

Tanira Kingi Slide 5 Two events that shaped NZ  Treaty of Waitangi 1840  Native Land Act 1865

Tanira Kingi Slide ,000 15,000 2,000 Ha 000’s Māori land alienation from 1840

Tanira Kingi Slide 7 Origins of Māori agriculture –

Tanira Kingi Slide 8 Contribution to NZs primary industry  Dairy – approx 8-10% of national production  Sheep and beef - approx 12% of national production*  Forestry - 40% of commercial forestry (with recent Treaty settlements) * up to 25% in some regions e.g. Bay of Plenty; 15% of M&W levy; 30% of national lamb production

Tanira Kingi Slide 9 Profile of Māori farming 1. Small number of large ‘corporate’ farms 2. Large number of small number of 2,000 Trusts < 5ha in size 3. Approximately 280,000ha or 20% of land without a structure

Tanira Kingi Slide 10 Characteristics of Maori agriculture 1. Farmers by committee 2. Dispersed owners, many who live away from their ancestral lands 3. Increasing numbers of owners who have no economic reliance on the land 4. Small individual financial return vs greater benefit of identity and cultural attachment to land

Tanira Kingi Slide 11 Māori values toward the environment and food  All living and inanimate are connected by a life force or ‘mauri’  People + natural environment = genealogy connection -Spiritual connection to place (ukaipotanga) - Cultural identity to land (turangawaewae) - Environmental guardianship/protection (kaitiakitanga) - Collective responsibility (whanaungatanga)

Tanira Kingi Slide 12 Implications for land use and food production  Land retention within the owner collective = no farming for capital gain  Time frames are much longer  Farms tend to be more diversified  Owners want ‘bundles’ of benefits = shareholder dividend + protection and access to sites of cultural significance + maintenance of the owner community

Tanira Kingi Slide 13 Branding Māori food – emphasis on:  The indigenous connection  Traditional practices and values  Environmental protection and guardianship  A community connected with place over millennia  Example: Kono NZ Ltd – a subsidiary of Wakatu Incorporation

Tanira Kingi Slide 14 Kono - the promotion “KONO in Māori means food basket, traditionally woven from harakeke (flax).” “We, the Māori, the first people of Aotearoa/ New Zealand, have been environmental guardians for generations.” URL:

Tanira Kingi Slide 15 Māori Organic Certification © Hua Maori is Te Waka Kai Ora's organic certification scheme and labelling system. © HUA MAORI ORGANIC CERTIFICATION "Indigenous systems of food production are now being recognized internationally for their sustainability. Hua Maori is our response to this growing market for culturally and environmentally responsible foods and medicine." — Percy Tipene, Chair of Te Waka Kai Ora URL:

Tanira Kingi Slide 16 Case study: Northland Māori Organic Beef*  Joint research project with TOPIS with support from Te Waka Kai Ora (Maori Organics Authority of Aotearoa)  May 2007 – Dec 2008: * Sinclair, S. (2008). Northland Māori Organic Beef: Identifying Opportunities and Risks in Organic Beef Value Chains - An Investigative Review. Report for FRST (September ), Natural and Organic Programme (C10X0236)

Tanira Kingi Slide 17 Source: Sinclair 2008:47

Tanira Kingi Slide 18 Analysis of 24 TOPIS farms - 4,450 effective ha total (average 185ha) - stocking 2,237 mixed aged cows (average 93) - 54% of farms LUC 3-5 (rolling) - 46% farms beef finishing as a major enterprise - 33% as store cattle producers. - only 4% certified organic - 51% non-certified organic (transitional) Source of photo:

Tanira Kingi Slide 19 Challenges for TOPIS members: 1. Shortage of technical expertise 2. Small scale farms with low access to capital 3. Poor linkages with processors and markets 4. Extensive pasture management, infrastructure and weed control challenges 5. 50% of farmers are nearing retirement Source of photo:

Tanira Kingi Slide 20 Challenges and opportunities 1. Lack of accurate information on Māori land 2. Corporate structures – high reliance on governance and organisational management skills 3. for land owners to examine structural options to increase scale efficiencies 4. Need decision-making models that incorporate tikanga (cultural values and processes) 5. Recognition that Māori landowning communities have a long-term view of land use that resonates widely as being more socially acceptable and environmentally sustainable