June 13, 2013
More value in Maori assets
The Ministry for Primary Industries wants to encourage Maori landowners to get more out of their primary sector assets.
The ministry is holding a free seminar tomorrow at the National Fieldays in Mystery Creek near Hamilton.
Speakers will include Maori Trustee Jamie Tuuta, Traci Houpapa from the Federation of Maori Authorities, Miraka chair Kingi Smiler and the ministry’s Maori primary sector partnerships manager, Ben Dalton.
Mr Dalton says better use of Maori land can bring in another $1 billion a year in export revenue, but it will require some major change.
"The biggest problem we've had with ownership of the resource is that we are by and large ticket clippers. That means we lease our land to Pakeha farmers or others who are farming, we lease our (fisheries) quota, we get a rental for use of our land for forestry, so the real test is how do you move Maori from their position in the value chain," he says.
Mr Dalton says milk processing company Miraka has shown how Maori companies can move up the value chain to where there is more profit to be had.
The one-hour seminar will be at 10am tomorrow in the Fielddays Function Centre.