East Coast’s Turihaua Angus expanding to meet demand
The Gisborne Herald | 19 March 2026
by Murray Robertson
Turihaua Angus, New Zealand’s oldest Angus stud, is adding to its 120-year legacy with the purchase of neighbouring farm Puanga Station.
“The acquisition of the 240ha effective property is a strategic play by my wife, Sarah, and me to meet a rising tide of demand from our commercial bull clients,” Turihaua Angus studmaster Paul Williams said.
Without the complication of existing housing, the block offered a seamless, practical extension to the current operation.
“It’s about more than just adding acreage. It’s about increasing the selection pressure and variety available to our buyers.”
It gave their herd significant depth as they looked towards the future.
“We can now expand to offer more choice without diluting the quality our brand has built over the last century.
“Ultimately, higher in-calf rates allow us to move faster on genetic gains, and that performance flows directly to the farmers sourcing our bulls.”
The station calves down around 400 stud cows, including 120 yearling heifers and roughly 50 embryo transfer (ET) cows.
“The new land provides the buffer needed to scale the ET programme toward a target of 150-200 implants annually, a move that accelerates growth while maintaining tight biosecurity.
“Expansion at Turihaua is being matched by an appetite for new technology.
“We are currently utilising CowManager wearable tags for a heifer fertility trial and investigating Halter systems to sharpen grazing management.
“These tools are aimed squarely at lifting fertility and efficiency, ensuring the genetics on offer are backed by hard data,” Williams said.
“Despite the increase in scale, our focus remains clearly on the bread and butter of the industry – the commercial farmer.
“As demand grows, this expansion allows us to stay ahead of the curve. By getting more calves on the ground, we can meet that interest while ensuring our prices remain sustainable and affordable for the commercial farmers who are the backbone of this industry.”
The new block also captures a large portion of the upper catchment of the Turihaua Stream, which the Williams family had restored up to the new property’s boundary, giving the business more control over environmental restoration from the top to the bottom of the catchment.
“There is an incredible 16-hectare block of East Coast remnant puriri forest on Puanga Station, which we are hoping to restore through deer and stock exclusion and pest control.
“This will link with our ongoing stream and wetland restoration work supported by the Whāngārā Community Catchment Group.”
