Local production ceases at lemon farm

A woman who built a lemon products empire from scratch at her Featherston farm and home has had to drop several of her products.

Earlier this year, Mary Biggs' business Lavender's Green took a hit when a major client stopped ordering lemon curd. She said the business is now focussing on producing cordials and preserved lemons off-site in Auckland.

Curd, chutney, fudge, pickle and jelly will no longer be made at the farm, where she first started the business.

"Essentially what we are doing is making our core products."

The core products have always done well, she said.

"We do well with the lemons and cordials in Australia, it made sense to try and focus on those products that do do well."

Her company had been supplying lemon curd to Piako Yoghurt for four years when Piako started outsourcing its manufacturing and distribution to Fonterra.

Just after this, Lavender's Green stopped getting orders from the dairy giant.

"We then lost that piece of business, so that was a pretty sad day really because it was significant, and we had to look at everything we were doing then."

She believes the reason is because the lemon curd is egg-based and the Fonterra factory is egg-free, although she hasn't been told this directly by Fonterra.

"If they took our lemon curd, they would totally have to strip out the machinery and clean it every time after using our curd, obviously they weren't going to do that," Mrs Biggs said.

After failing to find another buyer, Mrs Biggs made the tough decision to stop production at her farm.

Four people were made redundant.

"It was an awful decision to make, it wasn't nice at all.

"Two of the ladies have been working in the kitchen with me for over 10 years, it's really sad."

She said she understands Fonterra's decision.

"I'm still very sad about it but I cant do anything about, it's about a realistic decision"

Mrs Biggs originally wanted to start a lavender oil business and to fund it, started making lemon cordial in 1999.

A chance meeting with a Kirkcaldie and Stains food buyer saw her take her first order for 500 bottles.

Since then, Lavender's Green's products are sold all around New Zealand and Australia.

She said while the change is big, it won't deter her from expanding the business.

"They [the products] work on the export stage very well.

"I'm constantly on the look out for more markets in Australia."

It has had the cordials contract manufactured in Auckland for five years already and the preserved lemon will now be processed off site as well.

The lemons will still come from the farm and other local growers and then sent to Auckland.

"I'm going to keep going, it's a big change, I'm hopeful that it will go well." In business, you have to be adaptable, said Mrs Biggs.

"We don't want to give up."