Four new food-and-wine trail maps are being developed for Northland.
By the end of this year, visitors and locals will be able to pack an overnight bag and embark on self-drive tours in which they savour the region's produce, says Northland's food and beverage ambassador Justine Stuart.
Justine Stuart Photo: RNZ/Carol Stiles
Northland cheese Photo: RNZ/Carol Stiles
The four one-to-three day itineraries currently being developed are the result of a review into tourism around Northland's food and beverage industry, Stuart says.
"The upshot was there is lots of potential here. We've got a thriving industry of lots of wonderful boutique businesses doing wonderful artisan products on an award-winning scale but it's very under-promoted."
Tours are being created for the Kaiwaka to Tutukaka area, the Bay of Islands and Kerikeri, the Far Far North and the East Coast to Kaipara, she says.
They will enable people to get up close to the origin of Northland's unique products, Justine says.
"The X-factor is that there's no mass manufacturing plants here so if someone is growing something from scratch and value-adding... all of that production happens by hand so you are often entering into people's homes and into garages and it's a very close and passionate world you get to know... and you can really taste it in the products."
So far, Stuart has a list of 150 Northland food and beverage producers and keeps finding more.
"There's lots to discover," she says.
Northland is known for its red wines Photo: RNZ/Carol Stiles
