About Meadow Mushrooms
Formed in 1970 by Philip Burdon and Roger Giles as a private company, Meadow Mushrooms Ltd is today the largest producer of mushrooms in NZ and one of the top two in Australasia. The head office is based at it’s original site in Prebbleton, 20 minutes south of Christchurch New Zealand. Meadow Mushrooms Ltd. employs approx 500 people nationwide, with more developments in the pipeline.
It is the only grower in New Zealand with full vertical integration from the production of spawn through to the dispatch to market and has a diverse range of products all with the common theme of a mushroom base.
Meadow Mushrooms Ltd today consists of Meadow Mushrooms in Prebbleton (two sites), Miranda Laboratories where spawn is produced and Emma Foods where mushrooms are processed for canning and dehydration. Giggs Farm is another location of Meadow Mushrooms, where the essential compost is produced. This is situated just south of Christchurch at Dunsandel .
Substantial investments have been made in the upgrading and expansion of facilities across Meadow Mushrooms Ltd This has involved the introduction of the latest technology and computerised growing systems to both farms, and the building and utilisation of new state of the art aerated compost yards for the provision of compost to the two farms (most recently in Christchurch with a $45 million dollar expansion). Further innovations continue to ensure that Meadow Mushrooms Ltd continues to offer the best possible product to consumers.
In addition to these facility changes, there have been significant expansions of the product range offered and many developments in packaging.
The growing rooms now produce on average 147 tonne a week. The product mix is dominated by the market favourite, the White Button mushroom. In addition to this are the increasingly more popular varieties - Portabellos (large open brown mushrooms) and Swiss Browns (brown buttons).
The full range of fresh products are sold domestically with a small portion being exported. They are dispatched pre-packaged for convenience, as well as in bulk loose trays containing three or four kilo’s dependent on the product.
Over the years Meadow Mushrooms Ltd has become a well known brand nationally. Heavy branded promotions began in 1997 as a means to drive growth in the market. The product range under this 'Meadows' brand extends beyond the fresh category into canned mushrooms under the 'Emma' brand and prepared frozen foods such as golden and garlic crumbed mushrooms.
Meadow Mushrooms Ltd has invested significantly in it’s development particularly in recent years, and is continuing to do so. Keep an eye on the website for further developments and updates!