Foreigners after pine and grapes

Foreigners applied to buy $269 million worth of New Zealand property in the first two months of this year, well down on the $1.3 billion worth of applications made in the same months last year.

The Overseas Investment Commission approved 26 applications in January and February, most of them in February.

Commission chief executive Steve Dawe said it was not that foreigners were showing less interest. "It just tells me that in the first two months of last year, we had one large transaction which involved a forestry sale."

Changes will be made at the commission if the Government passes the Overseas Investment Bill. This would result in the commission being abolished and its staff transferring to Land Information New Zealand.

The biggest deal in February was Britain's Allied Domecq's application to buy 28ha of Blenheim land from Giesen Wines for $5.6 million.

The country's single largest forest nursery growing operation could change hands as the Horizon2 Partnership has clearance to buy 48ha of Gisborne/Hawkes Bay land from Puha Nursery for $3.1 million.

The application said Puha grew almost 20 per cent of New Zealand's forest nursery stock and Horizon2 was a partnership between Carter Holt Harvey and Rubicon.

Horizon2 wants to increase the availability of improved tree stocks. It already produces about 21 million treestocks annually from five nurseries in New Zealand and Australia.

Japanese company Nikken Seil is expanding its plant business outside Oamaru. It was cleared to pay the Pringles $2.3 million for 158ha of land near its headquarters at the former Catholic boarding school, Teschemakers.

Nikken Seil is a pioneer in anti-ageing and food research techniques and is establishing an international college for students of health science.

Australia's Toll Logistics applied to buy 4.4ha of Auckland land from J. D. Lyons & Co for an undisclosed amount. J. D. Lyons is a transport, distribution, warehousing and storage business.

Joy Ann Stockwell, of the United States, got approval to buy a holiday camp with cabins, chalets, a camping site and shop at Tamaterau, Whangarei. She told the commission the $1.6 million sale would result in the property being upgraded to attract more tourists.

Bilsdale Orchard of Britain was cleared to buy 7.3ha of Katikati land from Helen and Peter Carr for $1.9 million. It plans to expand a kiwifruit orchard on the property.

The Nobilo Wine Group was cleared to buy Huapai land for $1.1 million. It wants to convert a house there into office space.

Japanese-owned forestry giant Juken New Zealand can buy 491ha of Wairoa land from Whakatu Afforestation Trust for $943,875. It told the commission this would give it a more secure supply of wood for its Gisborne processing mill.

Taiwan's Lo and Hsu Family Trust was approved to buy 28ha of Hawera forestry land from Mei-Ying Chung of New Zealand for $249,000. It was also cleared to buy a 20.7ha block of Wanganui forestry land.

Nursing growth

* Forestry giants Carter Holt Harvey and Rubicon are planning to expand their nursery and tree research business.

* Their joint-venture company has got approval to buy the country's largest forest nursery business.

* Horizon2 is the largest employer in the eastern Bay of Plenty town of Te Teko and its nursery produces 5 million baby pine trees a year.