OUR FARMS
Generational custodians of the land.
At the heart of the Wisewool™ journey is our network of over 250 family-owned partner farms across the wider Tairāwhiti Gisborne region. We have worked alongside some of these families for well over a century, on relationships built on mutual respect, deep agricultural expertise and an unwavering commitment to A-grade quality.
Pins show each farm's district, not its gate. Tap a pin for details.
WiseBatch 24
Otokorau Station
Tony Faram has lived and farmed at Otokorau his entire life. The 2,800-hectare property near Otoko is mostly steep hill country, and Tony runs it with a team of three stock people and a fencer in a balanced mix of roughly 55% sheep and 45% cattle. After an Agricultural Commerce degree at Lincoln University and a stint on another Gisborne farm, he came home to work alongside his father before eventually taking over. He now shares the land with his parents, his partner Jess and their two sons. Come autumn, the paddocks green up, the native bush turns colour, and the stock are looking their best.
Raukura Station
Raukura Station, on Richardson Road in Tiniroto, has been in the Hewetson family since the late 1940s, when Rob Hewetson bought what was then a bush block and cleared it by hand with the help of Fijian scrub cutters, leaving the steepest slopes in native bush. After Rob's death in 1985, his wife Stella carried the farm until 1996, and it has been professionally managed ever since. Today it is owned by sisters Vicky, Anne and Debbie Hewetson, and run day to day by Cameron Rowden and Molly Bennett with a small team. The steep Tiniroto country borders the Hangaroa River, with native bush protected under QEII covenant. Come autumn, poplars line the roads in gold and the farm settles into a quieter rhythm heading into winter.
Roger White has farmed Cheviot Hills, on Tiniroto Road, since 1990, carrying on a working life that began the day he was born on a farm. The 550-hectare property sits at 329 metres, mostly medium to steep hill country, and is home to Roger, Kelly and their two children. It is a breeding operation first, running around 55% sheep and 45% cattle with a little trading stock, and no cropping. Several native bush pockets are protected under QEII Trust covenants, with waterways fenced off so native plants can take hold. By the time autumn rolls around, the rain has usually returned and the hills flush green again.
Cheviot Hills
WiseBatch 21
Fraser and Jaime Tombleson farm Aerial Station, a 1,006-hectare sheep and cattle property in the steep hill country of Otoko, Gisborne, where they are raising their three children, twins Jonty and Isabel, and younger daughter Billie. Running approximately 8,000 stock units, of which 65% are sheep and 35% cattle, Aerial Station produces exceptional Romdale fleece that meets rigorous global quality standards. Beyond farming, Fraser is a respected horseman who breeds sport horses, while Jaime runs Jamie Lucinda Jewellery from a workshop perched above the valley. The Tomblesons’ are working towards official regenerative farm verification, with a clear goal of building an operation that can be passed on as a thriving, resilient farm for the next generation.
Aerial Station
Jon Reeves is the Farm Manager of Waihapua Station, a 700-hectare hill country property on Takapau Road near Tolaga Bay on the East Coast. Having managed the farm for the past 12 years, Jon brings the knowledge and values of a sixth-generation farming family, having been born and bred on the East Coast. The farm runs a mix of approximately 40% sheep and 60% cattle across 550 effective hectares, producing premium strong wool that meets the Wisewool Standard. Jon's favourite time of year is autumn, when the temperatures begin to cool, the deer roar echoes through the hills, and the duck shooting season begins.
Waihapua
George and Abby Whitehead manage Maranui Station in Ormond Valley, Gisborne, where they live with their three children. George has spent his entire working life in farming, progressing from shepherding and stock management roles to leading the farm today. Maranui Station comprises 847 effective hectares across two blocks, with a mix of fertile hill country and higher, steeper terrain, running an even split of sheep and cattle. George and Abby enjoy spring most on the farm, when new lambs are born and the next season begins.
Maranui
WiseBatch 19
The McIldowie family has farmed Gisborne's Totangi Station since 1907. Longtime campaigners for wool's natural performance, George and Emma balance the station's ecosystem between sheep and cattle, clipping over 60,000 kilograms of strong wool a year.
“Sheep have been at the core of our business, and the coarse wool of the Romney breed is a tried and tested survivor of the decades,” says George. “We wholeheartedly believe wool will return to its rightful place in our everyday modern lives and re-establish itself as a premium, primary fibre.”
- George Mcildowie
Totangi Station
Elmore
Elmore sits near the highest point of the highway between Gisborne and Ōpōtiki. Ken and Kirsty Shaw have farmed it since 2000, running 2,900 Romdale ewes and 650 cattle across 680 effective hectares. When Ken fell ill in 2010, Kirsty took on full management, exactly the kind of resilience East Coast hill country demands. The Shaws are recognised Beef + Lamb NZ Monitor Farmers, and the family has farmed this valley for over 125 years.
Aurora
Aurora sits in the hill country of Tiniroto, inland between Gisborne and Wairoa, a region known for deep farming heritage and classic strong-wool country. Richard Coop runs Aurora alongside the leased Reripi block, a balanced 50/50 sheep and cattle operation, producing Romney wool from hills that have been farmed continuously for generations.
Te Aroha Station
Forty-two kilometres west of Gisborne, Te Aroha is one of Tairāwhiti's most storied farms. The Steele family has farmed it since 1911. Phil returned in 1990 and expanded the operation in 2005 by absorbing the neighbouring 430-hectare Sherbrook property. Today Phil and Minna Steele run over 3,400 Romney sheep alongside a long-running Hereford cattle programme.