Wairarapa Grains
The real story of Wairarapa Grains has been written for your enjoyment by Esta Chaplin, a 2026 New Zealand Food Communicators Scholarship recipient .
The Grain Behind the Great
Wairarapa Grain Collective
Monty & Sons Pasta may have been crowned Supreme Champion at the ‘Outstanding Food Producer Awards’ but behind this great pasta lies an equally great grain.
That award-backing grain is durum wheat, grown by the Wairarapa Grain Collective, a group of four farming families collaborating to produce a premium New Zealand-grown flour that is a prize-winner in its own right after picking up a gold medal in the Farro Earth category at the Awards.
At a time when New Zealand imports most of its grain, the Collective is helping build a stronger, more resilient local food system.
But it was a widespread crop crisis that turned the farming group onto durum wheat after a pea weevil invasion about 10 years ago. While the pea ban was lifted in 2021, the Collective, with support from the Foundation for Arable Research, had moved on to more lucrative pastures.
As Farmer Ross Johnson puts it: "We didn't quite know what we were sitting on".
What they were sitting on, it turns out, was a grain with a kernel of greatness.
Before partnering with Monty & Sons, the Collective supplied its flour to restaurants seeking quality local ingredients. The cooperative effort allowed the farming families to create, and fill, a niche.
The families also shared an ethos of putting soil first. By using a no-till approach the farmers established a system that can produce food for the future.
The farmers say they have a goal of “putting some positivity in the industry and showing that New Zealand can grow good quality grains for human consumption”.
That philosophy has proved a natural fit with the sustainability focused Monty & Sons. "We want to do better for Monty and they want to do better for us".
The Wairarapa Grain Collective and Monty & Sons are proving what can happen when growers and food producers work together to put more New Zealand-grown grains on Kiwi family tables.
Looking ahead, the farmers hope to expand their range and produce a wider variety of flours. But the farmers have an even bigger ambition.
"The real win would be selling our flour back to Italy".
It's a statement made with a chuckle but it hides a serious ambition for New Zealand to produce grains that stand alongside the world's best.
Working with the New Zealand Grain Collective, they aim to build a wider awareness of the quality and potential of New Zealand-grown grain.
Despite their achievements, the farmers remain classic humble Kiwis.
"We don't think our little flour can change the ethos of what people are doing at the supermarket, but every bit counts."
Every little bit counts. Every bag of flour, every plate of pasta and every partnership between growers and producers contributes to a food system that is more connected, more resilient and more proudly Aotearoa New Zealand.
Wairarapa Grain Collective sells its flour directly from the website, in specialty stores across the country, or for a taste of the product at its award-winning greatest, Monty & Sons Pasta.
Learn more from the Wairarapa Grains Collective website here.
More to Explore with Wairarapa Grains
Leefield Station Supreme Champion Monty & Sons
Meet the team from Monty & Sons, Wairarapa Grains Durum Wheat is at the heart of their award winning pasta.
Farro’s Radiatori Pasta with Guanciale and Kale Sauce
With thanks to our partner, Farro who have shared this dish using OFPA Supreme Champion Monty & Sons Radiatori, made with Wairarapa Grains Durum Wheat.