If you’re a keen gardener, you probably have a bit of Taranaki growing at your place — without even realising it.
Egmont Seeds in New Plymouth is the country’s largest importer of plant seeds, supplying retailers and flower merchants nationwide.
“We supply nurseries and cut flower growers who are growing plants for the retail market — the Bunnings, the Mitre10s, the Oderings, the Warehouse and the like,” said founder John McCullough.
The company’s New Plymouth warehouses are packed to the brim; corridors of shelves hold stock that is sent all over New Zealand, including to Yates, Mr Fothergills and Oderings.
“The number of species or varieties we hold would easily be two to three thousand.
“We are by far the biggest in NZ,” McCullough said.
Egmont Seeds burst into life in 1996 after McCullough finally resigned from his after-school job, one he’d held since age 15.
“I went to New Plymouth Boys High School, and one of their fundraising projects was work experience, where youth would go out and find themselves a job.
“The school would get the money, and you’d get the experience.”
McCullough went to the now-defunct Watkins Seeds.
“I loved it,” he said.
So much so that he would be almost 40 before he resigned.
“I became production manager at 24, general manager at 29 and left when I was 39. I was asked if I would take the company to Auckland and shift there.
“And I didn’t,” he recalled.
Instead, he and a colleague left to set up their own seed company.
“We flew to America and started knocking on doors, asking if anyone would like to supply us. One of the biggest ones said yes. And that was the start of Egmont Seeds.”
Now, they import from all over the globe.
“America, Europe, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Germany, Japan, Australia.”
As New Zealand’s largest seed importer, the consignments come directly to their New Plymouth depository. An inspection room in one corner acts as a transitional facility for the Ministry for Primary Industries.
“We have a bond store, and the seed will go in there. The local MPI officers will come in almost daily to open up those parcels and inspect them. And if they’re free of weeds and everything’s in order, they’ll release them to us.”
Close inspection
The inspectors look at every seed under a microscope, checking for weeds, dirt, insects, or other unexpected contaminants.
“If that seed fails, it goes into a biosecurity bin. It’ll get picked up by Interwaste, and they will take it up to Auckland where they will autoclave it under steam to kill the seeds, then it goes for deep burial.”
An autoclave is a machine that uses pressurised steam to kill viruses, harmful bacteria and other spores.
It’s a high-trust model, and one McCullough doesn’t take lightly.
“When we place an order with an overseas supplier, we would give them specific instructions for what we need for biosecurity reasons,” he explained.
“We need to know that the crop was inspected during the growing season and free of this disease, that insect, or if it was chemically treated. What was the rate of application and the active ingredients used?”
Occasionally, though, things get through.
“We had a Japanese supplier who sold us a beautiful orange petunia; there was no orange petunia before. And we sold it from Cape Reinga to Invercargill.
“Then, suddenly, we were notified it was a GMO — a generically modified organism prohibited in New Zealand.
“We have a computer system where we can recall every packet we sold or notify everyone we sold to. We recalled it and gave instructions on how to get rid of their plants.”
McCullough was confident the recall was thorough.
“The good thing about petunia is that it’s a soft annual. It won’t go through a hard winter. So, with a frost or any cold, it will die. So, if it did happen to stay on and self-seeded, it would have died the following season anyway.
“It was a good one for it to happen to.”
McCullough said the biosecurity process was complex and cost a lot of money.
“It’s a very rigorous process. New Zealand and Australia have the best and tightest biosecurity in the world.
“And for a little island nation like us, it’s critical.”
Growth spurt
A small part of the business sells directly to the home gardener via their website. However, during Covid, there was quite a growth spurt.
“Our sales went up a million dollars that year,” said McCullough. “It was just incredible.”
“We had to turn the website off for eight days in a row — we just couldn’t handle the orders coming through. I’d go to the office at 4am and start printing off the orders.
“They were coming in faster than I could print them off the computer,” he explained.
Many of those who found gardening during lockdown have become loyal customers.
“That summer was such a good one — it went on and on. Many people turned to gardening and never left. Why would you? It’s such a rewarding pastime.”
For McCullough, it’s been a lifelong passion.
“When I was four or five years old, I would be scratching around the garden with mum and dad. We had six kids in our family, plus the two parents. A three-quarter acre section, a massive garden as people did back then.
“And basically, I was the gardener. I would grow the tomatoes, thin the carrots, basically do all the work.“
When the time came to leave school, his father tried to sway him into a different field.
“Dad got me set up at the hospital because he worked as a lab technician analysing urine and faeces. I passed all the tests, passed the interview and got offered the job, and I was like, ‘Nah,'” he laughed.
The gardening seed had already been sown.
So, with spring planting underway, there’s a good chance your seeds began their New Zealand journey with some TLC: Taranaki-loving care.
“Absolutely. A very good chance,” agreed McCullough.
At 68, he has big plans for the future of the business.
“I’ll know when I’m ready to retire, and it ain’t yet.” he smiled.
“I still get up at 5am. I’m at work by 5:30 and can’t wait to get there.”