Where to get them in the bay

The Bay of Plenty’s warm, sunny micro-climate creates perfect growing conditions for fresh local produce, and our open seas teem with kai moana – our Bay sure knows how to do delicious!

To help fuel you with everything fresh and scrumptious the Bay has to offer, we’ve got the list of where to get your fix of top-quality local produce – from farmers markets to online subscriptions.

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WEEKEND MARKETS

Markets are a fantastic way to see a wide variety of local produce before you buy, and there’s the added bonus of being able to speak to the producers and growers, to learn a bit about how and where it was grown. It always makes for a great morning out in the community too, a place to run into friends – with coffee carts, hot brunch and often buskers completing the vibe.

On Saturdays, head to the Tauranga Farmers' Market, which runs from 7.45am until 12pm at Tauranga Primary School. For a Sunday market, there's the Mount Farmer’s Market from 8.30am until 12.30pm at Te Papa o Ngā Manu Porotakataka and the Papamoa Community Market from 8.30am until 12.30pm at Te Manawa ō Papamoa school

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FROM THE SHOP

Supporting our local shops is more important than ever in today’s climate – and the Bay has no shortage of goodies. Some of our favs are:

Bobby’s Fresh Fish Market 

As most locals know, this one is almost an institution, known for the best fish and chips around. People have even driven from Auckland for this fish caught straight out of the Bay and cooked to perfection. The portions of battered fish are huge and melt in your mouth (the chips are super crispy and delicious too), and you can sit outside on the harbour waterfront while demolishing the lot.

Legendary fish and chips aside, you can also buy a wide variety of fresh Bay seafood here, such as oysters, raw fish (even hapuka), mussels and more.

Baypackers Direct Fish Shop

If you're in the Mount and you’re a lover of fish, this is the place to go for a huge variety of fresh fish. Their menu changes daily depending on what the fishermen bring in – but you’re likely to find snapper, gurnard, tarahiki, trevally, monkfish, John Dory, tuna, salmon, moonfish, or scallops in the mix. They also smoke some of their fish to perfection if you’re planning on making a summer grazing platter or a scrummy fish pie.

Julians Berry Farm

FROM THE FARM

Buying food straight from the farm gate allows you to see for yourself where your food comes from – mindful consumption at its best! What’s more, you know the produce is going to be fresher and more delicious than from anywhere else.

Picking your own berries is, of course, a classic Bay of Plenty farm gate activity (it’s even better when there’s real fruit ice cream available too) and the berries in the Bay are so good we wrote a whole blog about it. Have a read then head to Julian’s Berry Farm or Blue Berry Corner in Whakatāne, Black Stump Berries and Iona Boysenberry Orchard in Papamoa, and Somerfield’s Berryfruit Farm in Tauranga.

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Some of the best quality truffles in New Zealand are grown in the Bay’s fertile soils and unique microclimate. Te Puke Truffles and Ohiwa Black Diamonds both offer weekend truffle hunts and tastings during winter months. These dedicated truffières (truffle plantations) also sell unique truffle-infused products like salt, honey, olive oil and butter for you to take home and wow guests at your next dinner party.

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The Good Farm is a family-run, boutique farm in Tauranga specialising in raw milk and spray-free produce. Their self-service farm shop is open daily from 7am to 7pm, offering fresh raw milk, spray-free garden produce, locally sourced seasonal produce, honey and Nikki’s free-range eggs. Payment is accepted in cash or via internet bank transfer. Experience the full farm life by booking a tour of their farm and garden. You can learn more about their sustainable farm practices, pick, wash and taste their seasonal produce  or meet the friendly farm animals. 

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BUY ONLINE

Buying online is just so convenient – what’s not to love about having a big box of local produce delivered to your door for minimal effort. What’s more, the product is bound to be fresh and it’s great to buy direct from local growers.

The Avo Tree

This Katikati business sources avos from local growers and delivers nationwide – they offer a genius subscription model where you can choose your avocado size, quantity, and delivery day of gorgeous Bay of Plenty avocados. The avos are handpicked and there’s nothing better than opening a ripe avo that’s never been in a coolstore, nor prodded and bruised by supermarket shoppers.

Kiwifresh Direct

This Te Puke company sources local produce from both growers and markets and deliver to your door for free if you’re in Te Puke, Mount Maunganui, Pāpāmoa or Tauranga. Check out their huge mixed fruit or vege boxes and hampers – such a great way to sample produce that’s in season, tasty and plentiful.

Manawa Honey

The Greengrocer

The Greengrocer has a shop in Gate Pa, but they also deliver online. Their model lets you order individual items of groceries (like a supermarket). They deliver from Te Puna to Papamoa East and cover all of Tauranga and Mount Maunganui (and on Wednesday they deliver to Omokoroa, Thursdays to Te Puke).

Bayfarms

Bayfarms is another local supplier of gorgeous pristine avocados (you can order anywhere from a tube of 5 to a box of 62 avocados!), and also have kiwifruit in the mix. Since 1995 they have sourced produce from growers all around the region, and sell to restaurants and supermarkets all around the country: buying direct brings you commercial quality avos to your door.

Manawa Honey

Manawa Honey was founded by the Tūhoe Tuawhenua Trust and this honey is from the forests of Te Urewera. The honey bees on the Trust’s 9000 hectares of native forest get to sip on manuka, rewarewa, tawari, tawhero, mahoe, putaputaweta and more, which makes for a delicious local product. The enterprise is heavily focused on sustainability – of ecosystems and community. 

The Bay of Plenty has so much to offer in the way of local produce – how you buy it is down to location and personal preference, but the benefits of living in our fertile, warm microclimate are there to be taken advantage of. Here’s to a summer of nourishing local food: Bon appetit!