Rockit Global Ltd., the Hawke’s Bay apple company experiencing growth in the highly competitive snack sector, is making a “significant investment” in a new site for its headquarters and post-harvest activity.
The company has purchased land in the Irongate Industrial Park, in Longlands, Hastings, and aims to open the state-of-the-art facility in advance of the 2021 apple harvest.
Austin says moving forward with the purpose-built coolstore, packhouse and global headquarters is a monumental milestone for Rockit Global, who have outgrown their current Havelock North premises. “This project signifies the growth of the apple industry in
Hawke’s Bay, and signals the coming of age of Rockit,” says Austin, who took the reins at Rockit in 2015.
The company commenced “an exhaustive search and analysis of potential spaces and spatial requirements” last year before deciding on the Irongate opportunity. “One of the many benefits of Irongate is the proximity to three of our existing orchards. It also gives us scope
for further expansion as we continue to grow, and the site is flexible, so we are able to use the space efficiently for packing and cool storage.”
The build will take place over two stages. Stage one will create the new office suite, cool storage and highly automated, high spec packhouse, with a mezzanine level allowing packaging material to be gravity fed. The second phase, earmarked for 2025, is likely to add
in further processing technology to provide further capacity for production through to 2030 and beyond. “We have considered the footprint of the land and allowed provision to double the size of our packing area and finished goods storage. We’ve also considered possible expansion into further brand extensions.”
MCL will lead the build. “This is one of the largest contracts MCL Construction has been involved in and we look forward to providing a high-quality build for Rockit Global,” says John Bower of MCL.
Rockit Global is known for its miniature Rockit™ apples which are now sold in Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Europe, the US and here in New Zealand. Earlier this year, the company launched a new, kraft cardboard pack for its snack-sized apples. The 100% biodegradable and recyclable cardboard is a more environmentally conscious packaging option, is sourced from sustainably managed forests and is PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) approved.
There has been consideration of RGL’s mission of doing no harm to the environment as it grows the business and builds the new facility. "We will be dealing with the treatment and discharge of all our own waste water, the refrigeration plant will have a zero global warming impact and we’re looking into the use and placement of solar panels as a sustainable source of electricity,” Austin says.
He expects staff to begin moving into the new premises at the end of 2020, in preparation for the following harvest.
For more information: 
Fiona Fraser
Contentment Agency
Tel: +64 027 501 3921
Email: fiona@contentment.co.nz