Harvesting tomatoes at Hari Hari

• Published date: 13 December 2023
• Publication title: West Coast Farming Times, The

The complex had been lying dormant for five years but after extensive work and renovations, part owner Hassan Dia is pleased to have reached the milestone

"We put over 11,000 tomato plants in and now four months later we are in the early stages of production," he said in late October.

"We started harvesting on Tuesday, October 24. Our first pick was just small, around 600 kilos. From now on the output will progressively increase to 25 tonne a week picking twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The tomatoes are picked before fully ripe and put in 14 kilo crates. The team starts picking at 6.30am."

The Oneone Road tomato farm will continue growing throughout the year with all fruit going direct to Turners and Growers in Christchurch.

"We will continue growing throughout the year and have a good outlet contracted to Turners and Growers who take all the tomatoes we can supply," Hassan said.

"When we saw the first red tomato appear in the crop, the whole team down very excited. I couldn't help smiling as I knew it was now onwards and upwards. When I look back at the start there was a lot of hard work. We took out 6000 grow bags that had old egg plants, and there were 10,000 glass panels which we had to be cleaned plus a lot of work bringing the irrigation up to standard."

KDB Growers expect to produce well over 600 tonnes of the Grandice variety in the first season with plants producing fruit over the next eight months.

"The plants will continue to produce and are given nutrients and fed every day," Hassan said, "The tomatoes are graded as we pick them and are then weighed and put on creates which in turn are put on pallets. Aratuna Freighters will pick...