Forest Talk

Tasman District Council’s Howard Forest and the neighbouring Porika Block have been sold, returning a combined $6.085 million and supporting the council’s long-term investment strategy.

The 955ha Howard Forest and smaller Porika Block, located off SH63 between Kawatiri Junction and St Arnaud, were placed on the market earlier this year. The sale process was managed by specialist forestry real estate company Arotahi Agribusiness and attracted strong i..... more

A large increase in log exports has contributed to Port Nelson’s underlying net profit after tax of $12.7 million for the year ended 30 June 2026.  

This has been supported by strong cargo throughput of 3.8 million tonnes. Revenue increased to $96.3 million, 15% ahead of last year, and the company has declared a dividend of $6.5 million to its shareholder. Despite the strong operational result, Port Nelson reported a total comprehensive loss of ..... more

Morepork Forest Harvesting’s Harvestline Mk 4, combined with a Sany SY415 Pro, is the focus of the Iron Test in October’s NZ Logger.

When Morepork co-director Brad Merwood first considered a Harvestline, he was a bit worried about it. More familiar with big swing yarder, it was quite a shift to the Mk4. However, he was quickly impressed.

 “It's a new generation really, a lot faster than the first examples of yoders that I had heard about. ..... more

An exploration of integrated clean energy, forestry biomass and infrastructure opportunities for next generation bio-industrial precincts in the Bay of Plenty could be on the cards.

Energy Estate, Kākāriki Renewables and NZ Bio Forestry have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to investigate opportunities that combine renewable energy, forestry biomass and enabling infrastructure within integrated bio-industrial precincts.

The agreement ..... more

Federated Farmers is backed Labour’s plans to tackle the incentives driving productive farmland into forestry, but it has serious questions about wider plans for the Emissions Trading Scheme.  

Federated Farmers climate spokesperson Richard Dawkins says that stance, plus Labour leader Chris Hipkins saying the party will not campaign on taxing agricultural emissions, show the party has listened to farmers’ views, looked at the evidence, and been ..... more

New Zealand’s forest owners are having a huge impact on the country’s pest control.  A new survey shows almost $4 million was spent by large forest companies controlling over 160,000 pest animals across 1.4 million hectares of plantation forest in 2025, with activity reported across 77% of the national forest estate.

The New Zealand Forest Owners Association (NZFOA) says the sector’s contribution is often overlooked in the national debate about ..... more