Latest news with #MattBentley
Otago Daily Times
18-06-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Apple venture taking off on dairy farm paddocks
Coastal dairy farm paddocks in Canterbury are being transformed into a high-production horticultural venture. Pendarves is about to become a lot busier as 250ha of apples will be supported by infrastructure on site, including accommodation for 100 staff. Named Tōrea Orchard and referred to colloquially by workers as ''the hort resort'', the orchard will be supported by accommodation for a further 200 seasonal staff off-site, to be built in Ashburton or Rakaia. It's a development that will see millions injected into the Mid Canterbury economy. Conversion is going ahead at pace, despite recent rain and lots of mud. Up to 125 workers on site daily include permanent and overseas staff on the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme. Trellis, involving steel frames and thousands of kilometres of wire, and irrigation, is being installed prior to planting of the first trees on Monday. There will be 900,000 trees in two stages, producing 116 million premium export Rockit and Joli apples per year. Tōrea Orchard is the first large scale Joli planting in New Zealand. Owned by the NZ Super Fund and managed by FarmRight, the orchard will become a significant employer – about 85 full-time equivalent permanents, about 450 for picking over seven weeks, about 150 for pruning. The first picking season will be 2028. Among the first permanent workers is Matt Bentley of Ashburton. The orchard manager began in February. From a cropping background, Bentley said he was enjoying the role, especially staff training and hiring. ''People management is what I love. I think that's what's going to be the best for me, growing people alongside the crop.'' FarmRight managers at Tōrea Orchard are just as excited as orchard manager Matt Bentley about the project. Meeting The Ashburton Courier on site last week were chief operating officer Gavin Tayles, general manager pip fruit Red Martin and general manager NZ Super Fund rural portfolio Ed Tapp. The trio said Bentley was an example of how staff did not need to have a background in horticulture for the many roles on offer. ''It will be a new opportunity for people to get into the industry, and we will teach them what to do,'' Tapp said. Martin said Mid Canterbury's cold winters would be perfect for producing crisp and juicy apples. 'Winter chill condenses the bloom and gives a good fruit set,'' he said. Tayles said the development would inject millions into Mid Canterbury's economy. In about four years, the annual spend on employment would be up to 40 times that of a dairy farm. ''The development will create employment opportunities and flow-on benefits for community groups, churches and sports teams,'' Tayles said. Increased traffic on surrounding rural roads would be minimised with bus and van transport provided for seasonal workers from the off-site accommodation in Ashburton or Rakaia. The off-site accommodation would be for picking and pruning staff brought into the area, likely under the RSE scheme. ''We will be looking to create synergies with other local seasonal workforces to help extend periods of work for people.''
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ward 2's Matt Bentley is the first candidate to seek Hillsdale's mayoral office
HILLSDALE — Freshman politician Matt Bentley is the first candidate to announce his intention of seeking Hillsdale's top office as the race to find a new mayor this fall inches closer. Bentley, of the city's Ward 2, was elected to the council last November and took office and with five months experience, he is seeking to fill a void left in the city when Adam Stockford resigned from office Dec. 1, 2024, and moved to Camden Township. The Hillsdale Daily News interviewed Bentley on his positions and why he wants to run for mayor. These were his answers. Why did you get involved in local government to begin with? "My friend Joshua Paladino recruited me to run for councilman of Ward 2. I resisted for over a year. Why would anyone want to give up their private life for the stress of being on city council? But Josh is persuasive and unrelenting." Why did you decide to run for mayor? "I have been firmly against the TAP Grant/Road Diet/bike lanes from the moment I heard of it, as I know the people of Hillsdale are. I have been organizing and lobbying against it since December. The citizens were told that there would be a council vote sometime between the January 16th public hearing and the end of February. Feedback would be heard, adjustments could be made, and we could alter or end the process at any time. None of that happened. On February 4th, we received an email from Manager Mackie, that council's authorization to apply for the TAP Grant was not needed. There have been many such cases. Two weeks later I decided to run. Two weeks after that I filed the paperwork. Regardless of whether I become mayor or not, I will continue to fight against the bike lanes until 2027." What direction would you like the city to go if you're elected mayor this fall? "I am running for Mayor of Council. The specific name of the office may seem unimportant, but I would argue that the actual title does shed light on one of the reasons that I am running. I love Hillsdale. Hillsdale in many ways remains as it was forty years ago. Hillsdale doesn't need me as mayor. It doesn't need some grand vision of the future. It needs the roads to be repaired. Council and staff seem unable to provide serviceable roads. I am running to be Mayor of Council because City Council is where the dysfunction is." What skillsets/knowledge do you have that you believe will make you a great mayor? "I don't have any particular expertise in municipal matters. I've only been on council for five months. I don't have any delusions about being a Great Mayor — Hillsdale has a 'weak mayor system'. What I bring is the voice of the people of Hillsdale, because I am the people of Hillsdale, and I'm willing to fight to preserve the city which we were all blessed to inherit." — Contact Reporter Corey Murray at cmurray@ or follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @cmurrayHDN. This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: First candidate for Hillsdale mayor race this fall explains platform
