Our Story

1960s

While in Cyprus on his honeymoon, co-founder Roger Giles visits some old sandstone quarries and sees they have the ideal temperature and conditions for growing mushrooms. He and friend Philip Burdon, born and raised in Canterbury, establish their first mushroom site on Cyprus in 1968. Business grows quickly, and the pair decide to start up a New Zealand operation. Intercommunal violence in Cyprus later forces the closure of their business, and they direct their energy towards establishing Meadow Mushrooms NZ.

1970

Despite being mocked as a ‘ridiculous pipedream’, given mushrooms’ lack of popularity with kiwis at the time, our founders persevered. Philip finds the perfect spot for the New Zealand farm - four-hectares of land on Springs Road, Prebbleton, just south of Christchurch. Surrounded by racing stables, stud farms and racecourses, it offers easy access to plenty of wheat straw and manure for compost.

1971

Meadow Mushrooms is officially born in New Zealand, with just 11 employees and producing only White Button mushrooms.  

1971

Cypriot operations manager Alan Gordon is brought to New Zealand and work begins on building eleven corrugated iron growing sheds. Philip, Roger and Alan don their tool belts and help with the build.

1974

Upgrades are completed at the Canterbury farm. They include new equipment, a new composting shed, fifteen growing rooms, an open-air composting pad, fumigation bays, more packing and storage space and a proper office.

1976

Meadow Mushrooms establishes Miranda Laboratories, its own mushroom spawn lab. Named after Miranda Burdon, Philip’s eldest daughter, it enables quality and supply and sees production increase from 2 tonnes to 200 tonnes per week by 2020.

1977

Now exporting mushrooms as far away as Bahrain, the company wins the Trade Promotion Council’s export award for Outstanding Contribution to NZ Trade.

1977

Emma Foods, a subsidiary canning operation, is launched as a way to use any over supply of fresh mushrooms, while giving customers the added convenience of having canned mushrooms on standby in the pantry. Named after Roger Giles’ daughter, it is run by ex-Wattie’s employees Tom Bloomfield and John Dunlop and offers three varieties of canned mushrooms: butter sauce and whole or sliced in brine. Consumer demand for fresh produce grows over the years, and this part of the range is eventually phased out some 40 years later.

1982

The original Prebbleton farm transitions from a sole, stand-alone site where all parts of the farming and despatch process are managed centrally, to a more specialised operation. Other parts of the process are to be managed at the new Wilmers Road site in Hornby.

1983

Wilmers Road site is established with 1,000m² per week tray growing capacity. This quickly doubles within two years and expands to 3,000m² per week by 2001.

1995

Giggs Crossing compost yard is established on a 550ha sheep farm, initially producing around 600 tonnes of compost per week. NZ Mushrooms Industries in Morrinsville is also purchased.

1996

The Swiss Brown Button mushroom is introduced as growing capacity and consumer demand expands. This variety accounts for 25% of overall yield by 2012.  Pre-packed mushrooms capabilities are also established.

2003

Meadow Mushrooms’ 10 year strategic growth plan is mapped out.

Feb 2011

Stage 1 of the 10 year growth plan at Giggs and Wilmers Road sites is completed. This includes a $45m investment in world-leading innovative techniques across the production process - from composting to growing and packing. Meadow Mushrooms now employs 500 staff and is one of the largest employers in the Canterbury region.  The Morrinsville farm is consequently closed.

July 2014

Stage 2 of the growth plan is completed, including a $12m investment in further farm expansion - creating 40 new jobs and increasing the output of White Button mushrooms by 25% (an additional 37 tonnes per week).

Aug 2015

Meadow Mushrooms retail pre-packs switch from a plastic tray to a biodegradable punnet, a first for New Zealand’s mushroom industry. The punnet not only provides greater protection of the mushrooms (helping reduce food wastage), but eliminates the equivalent of 2.5 million plastic drink bottles in the first year!

Nov 2015

The rebuild and relocation of Meadow Mushrooms HQ admin office is completed.

Sept 2018

Meadow Mushrooms is awarded the EY 2018 Family Business of Excellence Award, recognising leaders of outstanding entrepreneurial families who have found a successful balance between business and family issues, growing the business and taking responsibility for others.

Stage 3 of a 10 year, $120m expansion project at Wilmers Road site is completed. It includes upgrades from the older style tray system to new more automated shelf-based production, streamlining of operations to produce better quality and higher yields per square metre, and creation of a more efficient and safer workplace while improving the company’s environmental footprint.

2019

Work commences on further farm expansion to increase growing capacity at Wilmers Road, as decommissioning of the original Prebbleton begins - part of a site and operations consolidation plan.

The Shiitake mushroom variety is launched in June. As the third most popular edible mushroom in the world and a popular choice in Asian dishes, it’s a logical addition to the Meadow Mushrooms range.

Today

Meadow Mushrooms is New Zealand’s leading producer of mushrooms. Now wholly owned by the Burdon family, who bought out the Giles family some years back, it sees Burdon family members in various board positions - including Philip our co-founder, with daughter Miranda as the Chair, working alongside independent directors. An executive team looks after the day-to-day management of the business as part of a team of nearly 500 staff members.