Originally Posted by
becs
Motueka is a location we were thinking of and i know of the place you are talking about that closed down. It would be interesting to know from you - as you are there - apparently there is a new shop that has opened in February.... Arcadia Organics, as far as i can see they are a cafe, but with some organic 'foods' for sale.... would be really useful if you could see if you can find out anymore information as there doesn't seem to be much on the internet.
Arcadia Cafe and Organics is the shop that closed down, they were on high street in the CBD. Perhaps they've reopened somewhere but I don't know. Toad Hall is a cafe and organic shop also on high street but right at the beginning of town. They make beautiful gourmet pies that cost a lot ($7ish). I can't say why Arcadia closed but perhaps they couldn't compete in the CBD because Motueka has at least 6 bakeries (that I can think of off the top of my head) all as good as each other. Motueka has a plethora of yummy pies.
Toad Hall is more of a destination place because it's on a lovely little section, has a garden on site, and a beautiful play area for children.
I do think the Tasman district is the ideal spot for someone wanting to start a business centred around organics. There is the Riverside Commune in Lower Moutere, Chadrakiriti Meditation Centre in Upper Moutere, organic orchards, and a lot of people that strive for independent, sustainable living in the Mot Valley, Moutere Hills and Ruby Coast as well as Golden Bay which has the reputation for that kind of thing.
Have you heard of Bin Inn? They are a national chain that have organic options in store. It's where I buy all of my beans, seeds and such.
When it comes to organics, I don't think it's necessarily that Kiwis aren't open to it, it's that local has priority over organic. Also, it's not always easy or cost effective for farmers to make the switch to organics. Milk is one of those areas where it's difficult for farmers to justify the benefit to cost to make the switch. My husband is an ex dairy farmer from this region and the majority of dairy farms in this area still farm in the "old fashioned" way. Even in the Canterbury plains where there are mega farms, you don't see the factory dairy farms that they have in the UK and the USA. With the Fonterra conglomerate, it is even harder for farmers to offer alternatives and compete. I buy raw milk from a local farm that has 15 cows and sells it from a vending machine. It's not certified organic but the difference is so slight when it comes to dairying in this region that it's hard to justify the cost of organics.
http://www.villagemilk.co.nz/our-milk/real-milk/ Riverside Community also offers vending machine milk and I'm not sure if they are certified organic. What I'm trying to say is that it's not a resistance to organics, per se, it's just that sometimes certification is too costly for the farmer and they do try to do the next best thing. New Zealanders are very pragmatic, at least in this area and to my experience, so a shop that had a philosophy of selling the best and safest local produce without being too hung up on labels might succeed where a strictly organic shop that had to rely on expensive imports might struggle.
Another thought, I don't know if this matches up, but a good fair trade selection would be a draw for me.
Best of luck to you!