In Hawke's Bay, a community's attempt to hold onto its own food future has come undone — not through lack of will, but through the quiet disappearance of the machinery that made the future possible. Local vegetable growers, who had hoped to purchase McCain's closing Hastings processing plant and keep the region's production chain intact, learned in late July that the equipment was no longer available, rendering the bid unworkable. The plant will close on January 31, 2027, and with it goes not just a facility, but a thread in the fabric of New Zealand's domestic food security — one that local g
Hawke's Bay growers abandon McCain plant bid as equipment becomes unavailable
Regional job losses and reduced food security capacity as the processing plant closure eliminates employment and local production infrastructure.