On a slightly overcast Saturday in November, Horowhenua growers opened their doors to 2,000 members of the public for the third annual Horowhenua Taste Trail.
The event is a chance for local producers to give people an insight into the range of food produced in their region and what is required getting it to the plate.
The idea for the Horowhenua Taste Trail was dreamt up about ten years ago by enthusiastic local asparagus grower Geoff Lewis.
Geoff felt the Horowhenua district had always been undervalued as a primary producing region because it didn't have just one commodity like grapes or pipfruit, but instead, it had a range of things.
He believed that if people got the opportunity to travel around meeting local producers, perceptions would change.
Geoff's daughter-in-law Catherine Lewis is one of the main event organisers and she says when he first started talking about the trail the family said, "Whatever, Geoff. You're a little bit crazy".
"And then for some reason, three years ago, we decided to do it... two and half months out, we kicked it off. We've come a long way since."
People are amazed at what is involved in getting a crop from paddock to plate and just how much "love" producers put into their work, Catherine says.
She says they would like consumers to better understand and value their locally grown produce.
"Asparagus, for example, goes through 19 sets of hands before it reaches the supermarket shelf."
This year's Horewhenua Taste Trail producers are:
- Woodhaven Gardens
- Lewis Farms (home to Tendertips Asparagus)
- Genoese Pesto
- Turk's (barn and free range chicken producer)
- Woody's Free Range Farm (pork)
- FoodsThoroughbread
- The Ultimate Egg
- The Baked Dane
- Bagrie Dairy Farm
- Levin Eel Trading
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