1 Feb 2012

Land sales approved

1:13 pm on 1 February 2012

The Overseas Investment office approved several more applications last month, for the sale of farm land to foreign buyers.

A British couple is buying more than 200 hectares of farmland at Opononi in the Hokianga harbour for $1.3 million.

A 250 hectare farm in Southern Wairarapa has gone to a Canadian buyer who also intends to live on the farm.

And an Indonesian family trust is acquiring a half share of more than 1500 hectares of land spread over three farms in Southland.

The investment will be used to commercialise the Blue River Group's sheep milking systems and technologies, with the aim of marketing products in Indonesia and South East Asia.

In the last two years, the OIO has approved the sale of almost 360,000 hectares of agricultural land to foreign buyers, mainly from the United States, Britain and Europe and Australia.