This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Generation game: Who stands to inherit NZ’s wine industry?
With international companies increasingly snapping up New Zealand vineyards, and Māori communities fighting for their slice of the land, who will inherit the country’s wine trade in years to come? Sarah Neish reports.

WHEN A business is worth more than £1.1 billion in global export value sales, it inevitably emits a megawatt beacon to international investors, who come hopping and pecking like glossy-winged magpies drawn to a sparkling jewel. As one of the wine trade’s most glittering gems, with 421 million bottles shipped out of the country last year (according to NZ Winegrowers), New Zealand attracts more magpies than most.
In November, Australian wine giant Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) became the latest to announce plans to acquire a “substantial” Marlborough vineyard. The considerable purchase in the region’s Wairau Valley will add heft to TWE’s existing land there to grow the company’s New Zealand footprint from 505ha to 750ha.
Kerrin Petty, TWE’s chief supply and sustainability officer, says the acquisition is an important step in expanding TWE’s premium wine portfolio, “and ensuring we can keep up with consumer demand – now and well into the future”.
However, TWE is by no means the first overseas investor to snaffle up fertile land in New Zealand for the purpose of winegrowing.
In 2010, French-owned LVMH took over the ownership of Cloudy Bay as part of its portfolio acquisition of Estate Brands. A few years later, in 2014, Mud House sold all five of its vineyards (totalling 596ha) to Hong Kong-based QWIL Investments (NZ) Pty Limited in a deal estimated to be worth around NZ$46.4m (£21.9m), with QWIL Investments subsequently agreeing to lease the vineyards to Australian wine company Accolade.
Pernod Ricard owns Brancott Estate, including its Stoneleigh and Church Road labels, while Constellation Brands has Kim Crawford, Selaks and Crafters Union on its books. Foley Family Wines, headquartered in California, owns 14 different New Zealand wine brands, including Te Kairanga and Clifford Bay.
Varying degrees of enthusiasm
The recent news of TWE’s expanding presence in Marlborough has been met with varying degrees of enthusiasm.
Natalie Christensen, chief winemaker for Yealands, believes that the increased interest in the region proves “there is a real strength, uniqueness and global demand for New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc that can only be sourced from Marlborough”.
Villa Maria sees similar commercial advantages to the arrival of international heavyweights. “Foreign investment has helped to establish an industry scale and reputation that has allowed consumers across the globe to fall in love with New Zealand wine,” Patrick Materman, director of winegrowing, tells the drinks business.
“Lifting the profile of our flagship wine varieties benefits everyone.”
However, as Materman puts it, being 100% New Zealand-owned places Villa Maria in a plum position. “We can be more agile, make decisions faster and respond to market and consumer demands,” he says.
For others, the news that TWE has acquired an even bigger slice of the pie smarts for reasons seeded centuries ago, and reaching beyond commercial rivalry.
“We don’t like it because, once those lands are gone, they’re gone for ever,” Haysley MacDonald, owner of Marlborough producer te Pā tells db.
MacDonald can trace his lineage back almost 700 years, when in 1350 his ancestors were among the earliest Māori explorers to land and settle on New Zealand’s shores. Te Pā is also one of five founding producer members of the Tuku collective of Māori winemakers.
“I get why these [international] companies want to be here,” MacDonald says. “It’s just a shame that local people don’t get to have their own land.
“Everyone wants to own their own home, and land is precious. I’d say that more than 50% of wineries are no longer New Zealand-owned, let alone Māori-owned. They are foreign-owned and controlled.”
Through his work with Tuku, as well as other community initiatives, MacDonald advocates for indigenous New Zealand wine producers, with a focus on developing the Māori economy.
He explains that through the Treaty of Waitangi, a formal agreement signed between the British Government and more than 500 Māori chiefs in 1840, “a deal was brokered and then broken”.
It is widely accepted that many of the land rights promised to Māori in the treaty were ignored, and to help rectify this the Waitangi Tribunal was set up in New Zealand in 1975, which continues to rule on claims brought by Māori iwi (tribes) today.
Broken promises

“For every 100 acres of land, 10% was meant to be left for Māori to live on,” says MacDonald. “That never happened. We’ve never got our 10%.”
He argues that each government “gets a chance every three years to put it right”, but so far none has managed to do so.
Summing up why vineyard ownership in New Zealand is such a hot topic right now, he adds: “If you’ve got land, you’ve got a future.”
Royce McKean, fellow Tuku collective member and founder of Māori-owned Tiki Wine & Vineyard, believes the future of New Zealand’s wine industry lies in international outfits working together with indigenous producers.
“It would make more sense for foreign ownership like Treasury Wine Estates to be in partnership with Māori – both could benefit and learn from this,” he says. “Among other things, Māori can help with the authenticity of sustainable practices, and the large multinationals could open up distribution channels for Māori business.”
One thing is for certain – the march of foreign investment keeps on coming. However, the wave of international arrivals might not purely be about piggybacking on the success of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.
“Climate change is a challenge for all producers, and it’s natural for companies to be looking for other options to reduce their risks,” says PM Chan, founder of Domaine Thomson in Central Otago.
“Assuming that foreign producers are able to invest in marketing their wines all over the world, that’s a plus for New Zealand as a winegrowing region.”
New Zealand’s famously sun-soaked but cool climate has become the holy grail for vintners as temperatures around the globe continue to creep up, and alcohol levels with them. On the South Island, temperatures in Marlborough average just above 10°C in winter, while in summer time they fall just short of 20°C.
In Hawke’s Bay on the North Island, the mercury rarely climbs to more than 23°C, bringing a freshness and tension to the wines. With countries such as Spain and Italy experiencing record temperatures of 41°C and 48°C respectively last year, it’s not difficult to see why wine businesses might be tempted by the relative refrigerator of New Zealand’s vineyard.
However, as more outside parties flock to the Antipodean nation, the risk intensifies of the land being overworked and natural resources stretched to breaking point, with some believing that this has already happened in some regions.
Last year, David Babich, CEO of Babich Wines, which owns vineyards in both Marlborough and Hawke’s Bay, told db: “It’s already hard to buy land in Marlborough that hasn’t been compromised, either by frost or lack of water.”
The latest New Zealand Winegrowers report revealed that total hectarage rose by 1.3% during 2023 to reach 41,860ha, the highest level in the past decade.
Why does ownership identity matter? Because it falls to landowners to guard the ground they farm for future generations.

Long before international businesses began shouting about their sustainability targets, nourishing and safeguarding the land was a cornerstone of Māori culture, and still is today.
Two fundamental Māori principles are those of kaitiakitanga (guardianship and protection of the land and water), and turangawaewae, which loosely translates as “one’s place to stand”, whether that be in the snow-capped mountains, the shaded valleys or by the crashing ocean. The latter predates the notion of terroir, though “more and more, New Zealand is relating turangawaewae to this concept”, says MacDonald.
As explained by Tiki Wines’ Royce McKean, whose iwi is Ngati Ranginui, based in the North Island: “The Māori world ethos aligns seamlessly, and at a very deep level, with sustainability and guardianship of the land.”
In light of this, and given the rich opportunities that viticulture offers for individuals to work closely and in tune with the land, why is it that more indigenous people are not in the driving seat of New Zealand’s wine industry?
Small percentage
No official data exists to confirm the current number of Māori-owned wineries and vineyards in New Zealand. This is compounded by the fact that some are more transparent than others about their heritage, making it challenging to know exactly how much of the country’s land is owned by indigenous people.
“Today there are Māori working in vineyard roles, winemaker roles, CEO roles, but you don’t always know of the Māori connection,” says MacDonald. “You’d be surprised who in the wine industry is Māori.”
That said, MacDonald estimates that the percentage of New Zealand wine businesses owned by Māori is “still very, very small”, often due to the fact that indigenous people don’t have land assets “to put up as collateral when they ask the bank for a loan”, which makes starting out in wine or indeed any business that much more challenging, he adds.
New Zealand Winegrowers, the country’s wine trade body, tells db that it “supports inclusiveness and embraces Māori culture”, with CEO Philip Gregan adding: “We are proud of the diverse range of cultures that make up the New Zealand wine industry.”
The nation’s wine trade, he says, “works together to recognise the significance of the land, the history and the relationship with people, and to ensure that nature’s resources are used respectfully. Māori culture is unique to New Zealand, and internationally there is an appreciation for the respect that New Zealand shows towards Māori culture.”
Nevertheless, the New Zealand producers that db spoke to for this article were unaware of any government- or industry-led scheme to encourage Māori to enter the world of wine, or to educate communities on the scope and breadth of the opportunities available in wine.
Instead, some iwi are taking matters into their own hands.
“I sit on the board of my tribe, and for at least the last eight years we have been buying vineyards as an investment for our people,” explains MacDonald. Not only vineyards, in fact, but other ventures within the fields of agriculture, horticulture, technology and property.
“It’s our responsibility to grow our own wealth, but we started from a very small base,” he adds. “Once we purchase land, we always put in opportunities for our people to be involved. It doesn’t always happen, for multiple reasons. But growing that wealth is a priority.”
That’s not to say that steps haven’t been taken in the wine industry to blend Māori culture with wine – starting with integrating Māori language into wine names and terminology, although even this is subject to abuse. There have been countless instances of Māori terms being used in international markets, on the labels of products that have never seen a grape from New Zealand.
Gregan previously told the drinks business that he had “strongly opposed” numerous trademark registrations for products because they are “blatantly ripping off New Zealand”, including a “major US retailer” that features the traditional Maori greeting ‘kia ora’ on its Sauvignon Blanc bottle, although he admitted that assigning resources to fight these instances in court isn’t always easy or possible.
“A renaissance in Māori culture has been occurring over the past 20-30 years, which has seen recognition and integration of Te Reo Māori (the Māori language) and Māori culture become a part of government and large business,” says Tiki Wine’s McKean.
“This has coincided with increasing resources in Māori tribes through treaty settlements, allowing Māori to invest more across a wide range of industries.”
If a wine company chooses to highlight an authentic Māori connection through its products, then it tends to land well with consumers.
“Every market is interested and wants to know more,” says te Pā’s MacDonald, who is acutely aware that “being indigenous is becoming trendy”.
However, for Tohu, which became New Zealand’s first Māori-owned winery when it was founded in 1998, it’s vital that the message doesn’t stop there. The business makes a conscious choice to work with “companies in global markets that care about our heritage and want to pass that message on through the chain”, says Dan Taylor, international sales manager for Tohu and Kono wines.
He adds: “Our US partners enjoy learning about Māori culture, and our importers and distributors visit New Zealand every year to learn more. We treat them as we would any guest – with an educational, cultural experience, taking them to see significant sites to the business and to the families of the business.”
According to Taylor, these visitors leave with “a deeper understanding of who we are”.
The framework that supports and informs Tohu’s daily work is its 500-year plan for the land it cultivates. “Although thinking and planning 500 years ahead can seem overwhelming for some, for us as a Māori family-owned business, thinking intergenerationally is embedded in our DNA,” says Taylor.
While New Zealand’s landscape has undergone significant changes since Tohu was founded, certain constants endure, such as “our land, people, identity and community”, Taylor says.
He adds: “Inherited from our tūpuna – (ancestors), these treasures carry the weighty responsibility of preservation and enhancement for present and future generations.”
The next 500 years
Both international and indigenous presences in the country’s wine industry are growing, albeit at different trajectories.
Through the Tuku collective, Māori-owned wine businesses have “an open space to share knowledge, collaborate and strengthen our networks at home and internationally”, says Tiki’s McKean, all of which helps to amplify the role of indigenous communities within the trade.
Consumer interest in authentic stories of heritage is also helping to propel indigenous businesses and products into the spotlight, and is something that cannot be replicated by the big multinationals.
“Recent research conducted by New Zealand Story shows that including Māori culture in our narrative is perceived as positive,” says Philip Gregan. “Māori culture is seen as something that differentiates New Zealand on an international stage, and it can form an intrinsic part of how a product defines itself.”
McKean’s perspective is that it’s now “an even playing field” in the wine trade between brands with indigenous identity and those without: “Historically, Māori have faced many challenges, but I feel that’s well in the rear view mirror now, and there is good support of Māori businesses today,” he says.
The domestic political agenda also has a role to play in striking a balance between what multinational wine companies bring to New Zealand, versus what they take.
“The last government slowed the international investment right down and put some good rules in place about foreign buyers having to do more for the community,” says te Pā’s MacDonald.
“We just got a new government in October 2023, and they’ve only been in the hot seat for six months, so we don’t yet know what they’ll do. I’d like to see New Zealand wine getting a lot more sustainable, not only in terms of the environment, but financially, for those working within it.”
It’s worth noting that, as big multinationals continue to put down roots in New Zealand, there is often commercial opportunity for local growers. According to the sourcing model outlined in TWE’s annual financial report for 2023, only 21% of the company’s New Zealand grapes come from TWE-owned or leased vineyards.
Another 55% of grapes are from contract growers, while 24% is third-party-produced wine. Goliath or not, the company’s presence is feeding back into the domestic financial ecosystem.
When Marlborough Sauvignon became a global success story, it “changed Marlborough from a little, struggling farming community into what it is today”, says MacDonald. He adds: “There will be some that will say it was better off how it was, and others that will say the progress has improved the region. Either way, the floodgates got opened.”
Related news
India Budget: will tax relief measures flood money into hospitality?