For Thomas Bros, long term thinking is not measured in years. It is measured in generations.
Based in Riwaka, near the top of the South Island, the Thomas family has been farming the land since 1860. Today, more than 160 years later, the business remains proudly family owned and family led, with fifth and sixth generation family members involved and the seventh generation growing up around the orchard.
The operation now spans more than 150 hectares, including 84 hectares of kiwifruit, 70 hectares of apples and pears and 2.2 hectares of cherries.
Paul Thomas is part of the sixth generation and works as Post Harvest General Manager. His father Fred and uncle Bill remain involved at a governance level, while Paul’s cousins Steve and Mark manage the kiwifruit and apple orchard operations.
Everyone has their own area of focus, but Paul says the family still works closely together when important decisions need to be made.
“We have our own space, which I think is important, but we also understand what is going on in the wider areas as well,” he says.
That shared approach has helped Thomas Bros continue to evolve. Over the decades, the business has farmed sheep, grown tobacco and other crops, before making a defining shift into kiwifruit in the late 1970s.
Paul says that decision was led by his grandfather, Fred Thomas, who could see tobacco was declining and the business needed a new pathway to support more than one family into the future.
“He did not see a long term future in tobacco,” Paul says. “Kiwifruit was coming along then and he could see that it was a potential pathway forward, the most sustainable pathway for the family business.”
That willingness to change remains central today. For Thomas Bros, diversification is not about chasing the latest opportunity. It is about building resilience.
Paul says different crops help balance seasonal demands, provide continuity for staff and reduce the risk of relying too heavily on one category.
“We have had seasons where apples have carried the business, and others where kiwifruit has done that job,” he says. “It is about not having all our eggs in one basket.”
The same long term view shapes how the family thinks about sustainability. For Paul, sustainability is both environmental and commercial. It means caring for the land, while ensuring the business remains viable for future generations.
“We are on the sixth generation and I do not want to be the last one,” he says. “We want our future generations to have the same opportunity, to have a lifestyle and make an income off the land.”
“We make a lot of our big decisions around the long term,” Paul says. “And the long term is not 20 years. The long term is our grandchildren.”
Technology is also playing a bigger role in how Thomas Bros manages its orchards and post harvest operations. The business has invested in automation within the kiwifruit packhouse and uses orchard apps to collect data on productivity, costs and crop performance.
Paul says better information leads to better decisions.
“If you measure something, it improves,” he says. “If you do not measure it, then it is just someone’s opinion as to whether something is working or not. So we measure everything we can.”
The packhouse also uses AI trained grading to support fruit quality grading, and Paul expects technology to become even more useful in orchard operations.
He is quick to point out that this is not about replacing people, but about changing roles and helping the business work smarter.
“We started automating our kiwifruit packhouse five years ago and we still employ the same amount of people,” he says. “They are just in different areas of the business.”
Thomas Bros’ relationship with MG Group is another important part of the domestic market picture. Paul says the connection has strengthened in recent years, with MG handling the vast majority of the produce the business sells domestically.
“We trust MG to get a fair value for us,” he says. “We leave it to the team to come up with a plan to help us get the most value for our crop.”
At the heart of Thomas Bros remains the same steady purpose that has guided the family for generations.
The crops may change, the systems may evolve and the technology may improve, but the focus remains clear. Looking after the land, growing quality fruit and making sure the next generation has the same opportunity to carry the business forward.
Originally Posted in MG Group August 2026
by MG Group
