Medicinal plants are high value products with domestic and international markets
Although the natural health products (NHP) industry in New Zealand is well established and experiencing robust growth, access to commercial scale and locally-grown medicinal plant material is limited. Medicinal plant production and value addition through processing has been identified as a catalyst opportunity, allowing Taranaki to be a key player in this emerging industry’s supply chain.
The success of this venture would be underpinned by the region’s unique combination of geographical, soil and climatic attributes which provide an environment to grow plants and develop products whose bioactivity parameters rank them very highly comparative to the quality of products produced elsewhere in the world.
In addition to this, the skills and reputation of various research institutes, universities and R&D providers who specialise in agricultural sciences provide an opportunity to produce, test and provide scientific rigour to the industry.
Taranaki and indeed New Zealand has a strong international reputation of producing high-quality and unique products, such as dairy, lamb, honey and cheese and our ‘clean and green’ international image is ideal for marketing natural health products offshore. These points of difference should allow companies the opportunity to carve out a niche for their product.
Sector turnover and growth targets
The medicinal plant industry in New Zealand is still in its infancy, however, the broader natural health and wellbeing sector is well established.
NOTE: All figures correct as of 2022.
Medicinal plant and herb market
$430b Estimated global market worth in USD by 2028Global ashwagandha extract market
$16.5m Estimated global market worth in USD by 2026Global calendula extract market
$16m Approximate worth in 2017Global echinacea extract market
$2.9b Estimated global market worth in USD by 2027Find out if your land is suitable for medicinal plants
Compare land use opportunities by viewing the PDF or using the links below to access the interactive GIS maps (enter your address to get a more accurate understanding of the suitability of your land).
Please note: Maps are indicative only. Further research and professional advice should be sought if you wish to pursue this opportunity further.
Wondering if your land or business could diversify?
We can help you understand the opportunities that may be available for your land and your particular operation/circumstance. Whether it's initial advice, or pointing you in the right direction, we're happy to help.
In-region infrastructure opportunities
A drying facility is necessary to convert raw material (roots and other plant material) into high-value products. There are currently no at-scale drying or processing facilities for medicinal plants in Taranaki, however these can be initially designed for small-scale operations without need for significant capital investment. Work is underway to understand the feasibility of constructing or installing drying and other value- add processing facilities in region.
Demand from small- or medium-sized growers will be critical to the establishment of this facility. Should you have a requirement for such a facility, or have an interest in investing in one, please get in touch.
Our blueprint for medicinal plants in Taranaki
This blueprint provides an overview for commercial production and processing of medicinal plants and their value chain in Taranaki, and an indication of potential returns.
Please note: This blueprint was produced in 2022.
Medicinal Plants Branching Out Event
Landowners, food entrepreneurs, interested growers, and potential investors, heard from speakers Phil Rasmussen of Phytomed Medicinal Herbs and Anna Campbell of leading agribusiness consultancy AbacusBio, who shared their thoughts on what is needed to enable the commercialisation of medicinal plants activities already underway in the region.
Attendees were the first to see a demonstration of a new pilot Venture Taranaki has launched to map the region's medicinal plant growing activity. The digital map will enable the collection of meaningful data, further collaboration, and could be extended to other potential crop opportunities.
Venture Taranaki is keen to see what emerges out of this first phase in terms of interest and genuine commercial potential. Following this, the next stage, subject to resourcing, could lead to a pilot phase, more detailed research into determining the bio-active efficacy of plants grown in Taranaki, and further support to facilitate connections between growers, manufactures and buyers, both domestically and abroad.
You can find the contact details for the organisations and their presentations below.
Shonagh Hopkirk - Introduction to Taranaki’s medicinal plant activity
[email protected]
Phil Rasmussen - The medicinal plants opportunity for Taranaki
Anna Campbell - An investigation of medicinal plants for land-use in Taranaki from agronomic, market, scientific and supply chain perspectives
Venture Taranaki - Branching Out: Mapping the medicinal plant opportunity
How can you get involved?
Venture Taranaki is calling on growers to participate in the mapping activity to understand the scale and what grows well in the region to support the growth of a medicinal plant industry.
Those that participate will receive access to the crowd-sourced data to further enable their efforts. There may also be opportunity to communicate with others around the commercialisation of the ventures.
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Watch a recording of the event here
Event date 16 February 2022
gallery
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