New report highlights strong potential for protected cropping in Northland

Northland Inc has released a new independent report exploring the potential for protected cropping in Te Tai Tokerau, revealing significant opportunities for growers to diversify, improve resilience, and capture value from high-demand crops suited to the region’s changing climate. 

Commissioned under the Tuputupu Grow Northland initiative Pūtake Whakatupu – Foundation for Growth workstream, the report was prepared by the Bioeconomy Science Institute and includes insights from both global research and interviews with Northland growers already experimenting with protected cropping systems. 

Protected cropping systems include structures such as greenhouses, tunnel houses, rain shelters and shade covers. These systems allow growers to fine-tune crop environments, reduce climate-related risks, extend growing seasons, and trial novel high-value crops that would otherwise be difficult to produce at scale outdoors. 

Luke Beehre, Project Lead for the Tuputupu Grow Northland initiative.

Luke Beehre, Programme Lead for the Tuputupu Grow Northland initiative, says the report provides valuable evidence to support decision-making for growers considering diversification. 

“Protected cropping opens the door for Northland growers to do things we simply couldn’t do before. This report shows the real opportunity to improve certainty of production, test new high-value tropical crops, and create more resilient growing systems that better manage extreme weather. Growers who contributed to the research talked about improved crop quality, the ability to reach markets earlier, and better working conditions for staff - all of which strengthen the case for further investment.” 

The report highlights that protected cropping is particularly well suited to high-value fruit such as dragon fruit, papaya, mango, banana and blueberries, with several Northland growers already trialling these crops under cover. Many growers interviewed described strong market interest, including from supermarkets and wholesalers keen to source more locally grown produce. 

While the opportunity is clear, the report also identifies challenges that need to be addressed for the sector to grow at scale. These include capital investment requirements, the need for reliable water supply and irrigation systems, and the emergence of new pest or management issues specific to protected environments. Growers noted that, because protected cropping in Northland is still relatively new, knowledge is fragmented and greater collaboration is required to accelerate best practice. 

Beehre says these findings reinforce the importance of the wider Tuputupu Grow Northland programme. 

“This research gives us another important piece of the puzzle as we work with growers, industry partners, iwi, hapū and landowners across the region to explore new opportunities for land use. Our region’s warm climate and entrepreneurial growers give us a head start - and by taking a coherent  approach, we can support people to make confident decisions about where protected cropping might be the right fit.” 

The report also includes a financial analysis guide to support growers' decision making and assessment of the viability of different protected cropping options, including capital considerations, operating costs and expected returns. This complements other research released under the initiative, including earlier reports exploring the economic potential of new and emerging crops for Northland. 

Across all findings, the message is clear: protected cropping offers Northland a major opportunity to build a more diversified, resilient, and future-focused horticulture sector - one that aligns with market demand and supports long-term regional prosperity. 

View full report and other project information