Willesden Farms encompasses 5,843 hectares of land across the Banks Peninsula. Stretching from sea level at Kaitorete Spit to 800m elevation at the top of Prices Valley, our farm consists of 4,400 ha freehold and 1,377 ha leasehold ranging from highly productive irrigated flats through to steep hill country.
Summary and use: The Kaituna Valley Blocks are currently operated as an intensive livestock finishing and breeding system with irrigation systems covering 350ha of the block. The land is a mix of highly productive cultivable valley flats and rolling downlands, with a balance of medium/steeper hill country with both northerly (warm) and southerly (cool) aspects. The lower-quality hill country is utilised for plantation forestry. The hill country land extends up to the summit ridgeline on Banks Peninsula and has expansive views over Lake Ellesmere and the Canterbury Bight, which adds to the non‐pastoral value of the land.
Prices Valley Blocks (2,137ha ‐ incl. 25ha leased)
Summary and use: Prices Valley Block is a mix of two areas of flats in the Prices and Waikoko Valleys. The flat land provides a balance to the substantial medium/steeper hill country. Like the Kaituna Valley Block, the Prices Valley Block has a mix of both northerly (warm) and southerly (cool) aspects. The land extends up to the summit ridgeline on Banks Peninsula and has expansive views over Lake Ellesmere and the Canterbury Bight. Overall, the large-scale land holding is well suited to maintaining a livestock breeding base. Lake Block (335ha) Summary and use: Lake Block is completely flat and boasts very productive soil types that are well suited to finishing and dairy support. The farm incorporates a main grazing platform of 207ha, of which 165ha is irrigated, with a further 42ha of dry land grazing. The lower portion of the block has 78ha of light grazing (sheep only), as well as 48ha of permanent lake margin land.
Summary and use: Situated on Kaitorete Spit, 967 ha of this block was previously owned by Willesden and was extensively developed before selling it to the Tawhaki Joint Venture in July 2021 in a sale and lease back arrangement. Tawhaki is a joint venture entity between the Crown, Te Taumutu and Wairewa Rūnanga. The block is completely flat with good irrigation resources and productive soil types, well suited to finishing or dairy support. 350ha is irrigated, and approximately 253ha within the farm is restricted to ‘light grazing’ (sheep only). Excluding this area, the farm has an effective grazing platform of 699ha used for dairy grazing, other support grazing and some potato lease. The balance of 410ha of land at the end of Kaitorete spit is leased from by Te Taumutu Rūnanga.
Willesden runs circa 40,000 SU consisting of a breeding flock of ~15,000 sheep and 1,000 cattle, and a further 2,000 cows are wintered for 8‐10 weeks, and circa 500 young stock is reared for Kaimoo.
