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Nelson elson Weekly
News
TUESDAY 10 February 2015
Locally Owned and Operated
Honey season bang on the money Motorsport park gaining traction
Simon Bloomberg
Nelson beekeepers are enjoying one of the best seasons in 40 years with warm temperatures, timely rainfalls and prolific flowering resulting in bumper yields of high quality honey. "It's a really excellent season with yields well above average," Moutere Beekeeping's Hector Urquhart says. "We are getting around 50 to 70 kilograms of honey from each hive, which is very good. "I've been beekeeping here for 12 years and this year's right up there with the very good season we had in 2009-2010. But I think the quality is better this year - we have had pollen counts done on the manuka honey and it's very good." Hector says the heat, timely rainfalls and good flowering by key plants have combined to produce the perfect season. "We have the nice hot days and it hasn't been windy. The manuka and kanuka and kamahi have also been flowering really well and then we've had just enough rain to release the nectar," he says. Managing director of Nelson Honey, Philip Cropp, who is a third-generation beekeeper and started commercial beekeeping in 1972, says "it's one of the best seasons we have ever seen". Although Philip says it is "too early" to put a figure on yields, it will "be well above average."
Nelson beekeeper Hector Urquhart at one of his sites in the York Valley, near Bishopdale. Photo: Andrew Board. "The manuka has been flowing very well and it's our premium-priced product compared to other honey. There's lots of different grades of manuka honey but we'd usually get around $20 a kilogram." President of the Nelson branch of the National Beekeepers Association and Mountain Valley Honey co-owner, Murray Elwood, agrees the "perfect weather" has resulted in "a very good season". "This season is pretty darn good and I've been beekeeping for 25 years and this
season would be in the top four or five." Hector says beekeepers are also benefitting from strong domestic and export markets. Demand and price have been high especially for manuka honey, which is the most expensive in the world. New Zealand's 4279 registered beekeepers, 27,106 apiaries and 452,018 beehives produce around 9000 to 12,000 tonnes of honey annually, with almost one third to half exported. Exports of honey are valued at around $81 million.
THE FUTURE IS WORTH SEEING
The newly-named Kohatu Park is gaining plenty of support from motorsport enthusiasts and businesses, as fund-raising and planning for the motorsport and adventure park near Tapawera, south of Nelson, changes up a gear. Plans for a motorsport venue on a 203 hectare property owned by Nelson businessman and motorsport enthusiast, Garry Adcock, have been in the pipeline for a number of years. But the project gained traction last year after a resource consent was granted for initial earthworks and infrastructure at the site and a board of directors was elected to steer the project. And now the board has launched a new website to publicise the project and started a membership drive to show that it has enough support from the community. Board member Dave McLeod says they already have about 300 members and are aiming to get 1000 by March. Dave says the support is critical to show the Nelson and Tasman councils that the Kohatu Motorsport Park should be included their 2015-2025 Long Term Plans, to be finalised in June this year. Associate membership costs $20, with new members eligible for $55 of discounts through a voucher system backed by Nelson businesses. "That funding isn't going to build the park but it is important because it will show the level of support," Dave says. He says the serious funding for the project would need to come from major sponsors. Dave says the board has also received the first concept plans for some of the facilities at the park and he expects work to start soon on some of the "non-seal" tracks for motocross, supercross, rallying and off-road racing. Kohatu Park will be having on open day onsite on February 22. For more information about Kohatu Park and becoming a member, see kohatupark.co.nz
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