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Central Hawke's Bay Mayor Will Foley says McCains plans to close its Hastings vegetable processing factory is a "tough pill to swallow" for the Hawke's Bay region.
According to media reports, the company wrote to growers saying that following a review of operations at the site, it would be closing the Hastings factory.
Production would continue at the site through the remainder of the processing and packing season.
Foley says the closure will have a massive effect on the Central Hawke's Bay, which is already grappling with the Watties restructure announced last week.
"My thoughts immediately go to everyone here that's trying to navigate this news," he says. "There's no warning for this type of thing."
"I think about people like Simon, one of our crop farmers who sends his peas and corn to McCains. This impacts him, his family and the people that work for him."
Foley says the Central Hawke's Bay is a tight-knit community and when any part of that community takes a hit "it hurts all of us".
"There’s a chain of people affected; growers, contractors and people that sow the seed, trucks, processors.
"We need to get to the bottom of the concerns these businesses raise before we get more surprises like this, that cause more heartache and more pain."
The Government is funding a feasibility study to investigate what would be required for a successful farmer-led purchase of the McCain Foods' vegetable processing site in Hastings.
The closure of the McCain processing plant and the recent announcement of 300 job losses at Wattie’s underscore the mounting pressure facing New Zealand’s manufacturing sector, Buy NZ Made says.
McCain Foods Timaru plant is aiming to reduce its demand for heating fuel and CO2 emissions generated by burning coal.
When Northland leather worker Vernon Suckling started making horse saddles 50 years ago, quad bikes and side-by-side vehicles were unheard of.
Alliance Group has confirmed that eligible farmer-shareholders who supply and continue to back the business will receive up to $20 million later this year, following the strategic investment partnership with Dawn Meats.
With a general election under five weeks away, Rural News is asking major political parties about their policies and positions on key issues facing the primary sector. We will run their responses to each question over the next four weeks. The ACT Party and the Greens didn't respond in time.
The red meat sector is in great heart.
Dr Scott Champion, Foundation for Arable Research chief executive, says that everyone in the supply chain had a role to play in driving the sector's long-term success.
Entries opened on Monday, 5 October 2026 for the 2027 New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards (NZDIA), which organisers describe as the nation's biggest celebration of excellence in the dairy sector.
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