Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Maori producers launch collective to drive exports

Updated at 7:04 am on 2 August 2012

Almost 20 Maori food and drink producers have launched a collective with the aim of driving export sales and becoming one of the country's lead exporters.

The initiative, which is called Indigenous New Zealand, aims to promote the company's products here and overseas as a group while still retaining each producer's individual brand name.

Project manager Lucy Cruickshank says if producers can collaborate on the sales and marketing side it can lead to economies.

She says if someone is proficiently marketing the collective's products then it's possible for firms to leverage off each other, so better known brands can assist lesser known brands getting into different channels.

Ms Cruickshank says she's working to get the cluster into top outlets nationally as well as targeting a couple of offshore markets.

She says there's no cost to join the collective and she hopes to increase the number of firms in it from 18 to about 30 in the next 12 months.

Ms Cruickshank says the aim is for the collective to break into the top 200 export market.

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