Philosophy and Practice

Ti Maunga's beef and lamb are free of hormone growth promotants, antibiotics, GMO material and any toxic chemical additives.

Ti Maunga is a responsible food producer.
From the moment the animal is born in the pasture to the point it ends up on the end consumer’s plate, the Ti Maunga team makes it their top priority to ensure the grass-fed beef and lamb we provide the consumer is safe, healthy, natural and delicious.

We raise our stock according to world-leading animal welfare and environmental standards. Our on-site Veterinarian ensures the animals’ health is maintained to the highest possible standards at all times and our experienced farm managers monitor our livestock to ensure minimal stress.

Animal
Welfare

Environmental
Responsibility

Meat Quality
Standards

Food Safety
& Processing

Animal Welfare

We always treat our animals with respect. We’re committed to animal welfare and so are our farmers.

Our family farm make sure their cattle get plenty of exercise and can graze on a mix of grasses. At Ti Maunga our animals are raised in an enviable environment of wide, open spaces with minimal human interference to roam freely. At every stage of the animal’s life, we the farmers work towards delivering a product that is as pure and natural as possible, without compromising the well-being of individual animals. Animal welfare standards in New Zealand are exceptionally high and are protected by legislation.

If an animal is stressed at the time of slaughter, then the oxygen in the blood is used by the muscles beforehand and lactic acid is not formed in the same quantities. Pre-slaughter stress in livestock affects meat quality because the glycogen in muscle cells is used up, resulting in a high pH. High pH affects meat colour, texture, shelf life, flavour and tenderness. Keeping animal stress to a minimum helps maintain meat quality.

At Ti Maunga Farm, we ensure all of our animals optimise their physical & mental well-being:

Our animals are free-range the whole of their lives and are handled in a manner that minimises fear and distress.

Our animals are consistently monitored and managed to ensure their wellbeing with 6-7 regular hands-on health checks per year. All of our animals are managed using preventive animal health planning as determined by our on-site experienced veterinarian who is also a hands-on owner of the farm.

Our fencing, yarding, livestock handling are maintained at the highest standards.

Our decisions are always based on what will provide the best for the animal - we maintain stringent programmes to ensure animal health and welfare is kept paramount at all times. After all, only animals that have been well bred and cared for can result in something that tastes truly amazing.

Environment Responsibility

Ti Maunga farmers believe that we are responsible stewards of the land.

We aim to minimise the natural resources needed to produce some of the safest and sustainable meat in the world. Rotating the animals through various pastures across the seasons, means we are able to preserve native biodiversity, help improve soil fertility naturally and eliminate the waste-management issues associated with confined cattle sheds. All this means we are farming sustainably and self-sufficiently. We want to grow, farm, process and sell food according to our sustainable principles, and in harmony with the environment.

Our Land and Environment plans cover: Whole-farm sustainability; Nutrient management; Erosion management; Water quality and waterway management; Preservation of natural features and sites of cultural significance; Native flora and forestry management (including tree planting schemes); Pasture quality management and Pest and weed management.

Meat Quality Standards

Quality is a shared responsibility across our business. Every step of the way, from our farms to the marketplace, our customers and consumers rely on us to bring them the best, every time.

All animals are fed on our farm’s grass pastures and crops we grow ourselves and ensure its quality, safety and purity. The reputation we have built for delivering consistent quality is one we guard carefully, and it is our duty to maintain that trust. We apply a clear, consistent process to deliver quality products and services to our customers. Our people are critical in the delivery of high quality and safe products. Our highly trained team ensures we satisfy or exceed all the relevant quality, food safety and regulatory requirements.

Quality Mark

All of our cattle and sheep are grass-fed, are natural and healthy and full of omegas that end up in the beef and lamb on your plate. As well as this - it tastes delicious, a New Zealand Beef and Lamb quality mark!

All meat produced in New Zealand is subject to strict food hygiene and animal welfare standards. All of our animals are raised to New Zealand Beef and Lamb Quality Mark – the Quality Mark is your assurance the beef and lamb you buy is New Zealand grown, grass-fed, consistently lean and tender. Only beef and lamb that has met the highest quality standards such as eating quality, food safety and animal welfare can hold the Quality Mark. The Quality Mark's integrity is guaranteed through regular auditing at every step in the production chain, ensuring the highest standards are maintained. To be given the Quality Mark, meat must have a pH value of 5.8 or less at rigor.

Traceability

Ti Maunga proudly uses the Electronic identification (EID) system

Consumers are increasingly demanding more transparency around the source or origin of the products they are consuming. Ti Maunga proudly uses the Electronic identification (EID) system. This has have been installed on our farms enabling each animal to be recorded from conception to export. Knowing information on stock, how it is processed, and where it is delivered to, helps us meet customer requirements. Accurate yield information ensures good quality data is reported generating on-farm productivity improvements.

Food Safety

Ti Maunga farmers believe that we are responsible stewards of the land.

New Zealand is surrounded by ocean, ensuring a natural border protection. This has resulted in New Zealand having the highest safety standard for beef and lamb in the world. New Zealand maintains its reputation as a safe and secure supply source. Any major incursions are quickly contained and controlled, minimising longer-term negative impacts on New Zealand exports. New Zealand's strict biosecurity controls, quality control processes and geographic isolation have resulted in an animal disease-free status, recognised by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).

All our food comes straight from our farm to your fork. Every piece of meat we offer has been raised naturally, lived the best of lives and is completely hormone, antibiotic and cruelty-free. Ti Maunga adheres to internationally recognised quality assurance systems such as ISO to ensure the upmost safety and quality of the meat.

Ti Maunga farm does NOT use any hormones, medicated feed supplements or toxic chemical additives to induce the growth or enhance the appearance of our meat. All of Ti Maunga’s stock and pastures have been bred and grown using traditional farming practices – the family farmers of Ti Maunga meats produce foods without using genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in any of our products, processes or feed. We believe that questionable farming practices, including feeding an animal diets that not natural to them, the use of growth hormones and the application of GMOs in stock feed or the animals themselves should be prohibited until proven beyond any doubt to be safe for animals, the environment and people. New Zealand is in the fortunate position of never having had an outbreak of foot and mouth disease or an incident of BSE or related disease. The latter is reflected in the allocation of Group 1 BSE classification to NZ by the EU.

Our Meat Processing Plants

Ti Maunga farmers believe that we are responsible stewards of the land.

Ti Maunga only uses New Zealand Government Registered Meat Processing Plants to slaughter and process our beef and lamb. The plant is a strictly sanitized environment that are accredited, frequently audited by the Ministry of Primary Industries. It is a fully EU and USDA licensed facility for the export beef and lamb and also holds BRC “A grade” accreditation. In addition all animal processing systems are independently audited and certified by Assure Quality and are certified under ISO9001 and 14001.

The slaughter process complies with the New Zealand slaughter regulations (controlled by the New Zealand Food Safety Authority or NZFSA). The slaughter process is fast, humane and efficient. Animals are stunned immediately prior to slaughter and experienced operators carry out slaughter.

Post-slaughter procedures, which include conditioning, accelerated conditioning, chilling and aging, also have a major impact on meat quality and tenderness. These procedures are designed to avoid cold shortening, which causes meat to be less tender.

New Zealand’s meat inspection regime is regarded as being one of the best in the world. The plants Ti Maunga uses meet international hygiene standards under NZFSA mandated inspection regimes. Inspection is done both before and after slaughter and at various points throughout the processing / dressing chain operation. Government appointed inspectors ensure stock is slaughtered humanely and meat is free from disease and fit for human consumption.

The processing plant is Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) accredited meaning that meat procurement, handling, processing and distribution food safety controls are regularly audited to ensure they maintained to the highest possible level guaranteeing the production of a safe product.