Our Land of Milk and Honey
Gina Williams grew up on her family farm, which is located on the lower foothills of Maungatautari in the Waikato. The area is known for having an abundance of rich pasture and Maungatautari Ecological Island, which has the longest pest-proof fence in the world.
Gina's family have worked the land for almost a century. Today, it's a medium-sized, certified organic dairy farm, as well as a small apiary and garden that use organic principles. They combine intelligent solutions such as state-of-the-art robotics with responsible, regenerative practice. Over the past few years, they have retired over 10 ha of marginal land and have planted over 30,000 native trees and shrubs.
Gina and her partner Richard introduced bees to the farm two years ago and just released honey from their first harvest, which is now available at Everyday Needs.
1. Arnold Circus Stool
One lunchtime in 2014, my pal Zofia and I trundled up to Everyday Needs and bought three stools in khaki, sage and white. Since then, they’ve been a firm fixture at the shed, nestled into the office desk that my Dad made. They’re sturdy, adaptable and we like that they’re made from recyclable plastic and are easy to clean.
2. Opinel Tradition Knife
We’ve created a forest garden with quite a few New Zealand heritage orchard trees. Over the last few years Mum and I have found it’s essential to have a good knife you can rely on for pruning and collecting fruit. Our Opinel has become a go-to at the shed.
3. Ceramic Butter Dish
Recently, Richard and I have been playing around with cheese and butter, with the milk from our organic cows. We’re enjoying tinkering with ratios and methods and flavours. Come lunchtime at the shed, the butter dish looks good next to Richard’s sourdough loaf.
4. Japanese Copper Grater
Over the last two years we’ve been growing New Zealand heritage garlic, called takahue and kakanui. When you’ve grown something from seed, you can’t help but treat it with a little extra love. We find the grater to be a classic and strong edition to the kitchen’s second drawer down.
5. Honey by Our Land of Milk and Honey
Our first harvest of honey from the farm is a small batch of 200 jars. The bees collect nectar from our diverse pasture and wetlands. So, this means they can drawn on a range of sources and every jar looks and tastes slightly different. It was important for us to go with a glass jar that could be reused by its owner.
