Eady Manawaiti is the eighth-generation kaitiaki of his Te Kūiti farm, writes Jesse Wood. His journey blends whakapapa, environmental science and a deep spiritual connection to Papatūānuku in a groundbreaking soil carbon project.
Eady Manawaiti
Eady Manawaiti stands proudly on his 18ha Te Kūiti farm, nestled on the Ngāti Maniapoto boundary – an iwi directly linked to the Tainui Waka.
The land’s western edge stretches from Kāwhia to Mōkau, bordered by Pureora Forest in the southwest and the Rangitoto Ranges to the east.
The genealogy of the land begins with Paramount Chief Taonui Hikaka of Ngāti Rora, who lived in the early 19th century.
Waikato University PhD and master’s students with the team from AgResearch. Manawaiti is in the centre with his thumbs up, Professor Louis Schipper is to his left. Photo: Supplied
“The whakapapa of my farm is extremely important to me. It has not been in anyone else’s name,” Manawaiti says.
“We’re not farmers in my family – we’re caretakers, kaitiaki of the land. Our relationship as human beings with the land isn’t celebrated enough. We talk about milk production or stock numbers, but we don’t know the story of the farm.”
Manawaiti, 52, who is back working for Fonterra and is now Waitomo District Council deputy mayor, began a scientific journey seven years ago to explore methane and carbon emissions.
Methane and carbon emissions from New Zealand farms are amongst the highest in the world.
His goal: reduce his carbon footprint, preserve the land for future generations, and deepen his relationship with Papatūānuku (Earth Mother).
“I got curious about what condition I’ll leave the farm. If something happened to me, what am I passing on to my kids and my grandkids? I want to hand it over to them in a much better condition than when I got it,” Manawaiti says.
Soil health was one of his biggest curiosities. How much carbon does the farm’s soil hold? How fertile is it?
Master’s student Holly Hay (from left), PhD student Seagar Ray and PhD student from Nigeria Henry Ota. Photo: Supplied
“I always wondered why some Fonterra farms look lusher than others. It came down to the different type of farm management system that they have. But also using a different type of fertiliser. more of an organic type of fertiliser,” he says.
“I battled over a year about, how am I going to gain this knowledge? I took a big step to get a degree in environmental science at Wintec.”
That was in 2019 and two years ago he continued with his master’s in environmental science at Waikato University.
Manawaiti connected a bridge between two different worlds. Science and the Māori ambition to be close with the land and nurture it.
World renowned soil scientist professor Louis Schipper fed his curiosity at the university.
Schipper was excited about Māori landowners being curious about science.
“The reason I went to get the degree was to bring that knowledge back to my own farm. Some people study and don’t know why they’re studying or where it would take them,” Manawaiti says.
“I knew that I wanted to gain the scientific knowledge on soil health. The way to do that was to get a science degree.”
His master’s project was to compare soil carbon stocktakes under fence lines and in adjacent paddocks on Māori owned land.
Manawaiti’s soil carbon farming soil sequestration project with the Pātaka Institute for farmers involved adapting and experimenting with research on top-soil biology with an end goal to create a more sustainable farming future.
“My relationship with AgResearch and the university was key with getting the first phase of the project off the ground.
“That in itself was huge, getting a soil carbon stocktake in Māori owned land. I was proud to be the first to do that in the master’s programme.
“I did some samples in a spot on the farm where animals haven’t frequented and the data that came back showed a higher percentage of carbon in soil in that particular location compared to other locations where animals graze.
“I feel like a kid because that gets me excited. You just don’t know what you’re going to get with science.”
Waitomo mayor John Robertson, right, with his deputy Eady Manawaiti.
The main findings were that there was more carbon in paddocks than under fence lines.
His hope was then to move into a soil organic farming project.
“I hoped to utilise carbon sequestration through the photosynthetic process using different types of cover crop species like legumes, plantain, chicory and peas,” Manawaiti says.
“I wanted to try remediating the soil, to bring it back to its original healthy state through carbon cover cropping.
“It would remove the need for fertilisers, which would in time, reduce the amount of nitrogen that runs off into our awa.”
Manawaiti says the project halted at the carbon testing level as he couldn’t secure funding needed for tools and resources.
“My farm would probably have been the first Māori owned property to test and measure, for example the amount of carbon the crops could sequest over several years,” Manawaiti says.
“That still is the vision.”
Eady Manawaiti
As a first and only known research project of its kind relating to Māori land, Manawaiti said results aren’t perfect as replication on other sites is needed to prove theories.
“Ideally it would have been great to have had the funding to get the resource and tools that I needed to get this project up and going,” he says.
“But even to test soil chemistry, measure soil fertility through nutrients, soil carbon – which I did test through the University of Waikato – they were able to analyse that and compare it with data from Owl Farm at St Peter’s Cambridge.
“We went a metre deep, and I was able to get a reasonable stocktake of carbon stored in soil in its current state, it would have been so great to have planted the research area on my farm.”
He’s still hoping to find a more cost-efficient way to conduct the project and utilise the resources around him.
Discovering this knowledge could be instrumental in shaping sustainable land management practices and policies, especially within the unique context of Māori land management.
Although Manawaiti didn’t get the outcome he was focused on, the studies took him on several side quests.
Another master’s student and a PHD student from overseas got on board with his soil testing. They were searching for similar answers.
“It was a brilliant experience scientifically and holistically. I was able to share some of the Te Ao Māori culture,” Manawaiti said.
“For instance, saying a karakia before testing to keep them safe and to acknowledge Papatūānuku – self-awareness around their relationship with the environment – a wonderful experience to share.
“In Te Ao Māori we have a very spiritual relationship with the environment. Other cultures have that too. To be able to share the different methods of how you care for Papatūānuku, that really excites me.
“Underneath it all, we are just caretakers of mother earth and that’s important to me. Any type of farm owner or land manager, I get excited listening to their stories of care for their land.”
Manawaiti says if other landowners were willing to attempt a similar project, he would happily support them through his process.
“Science is about repeatability. All I can provide is the scientific process for people to follow. But a person’s curiosity and motivation to do that, belongs to them,” he says.
“That’s what’s uplifting about it. You have to hope that most human beings want to leave the world in a better pace then when they arrived.
“If the land is healthy, people will be heathy because that’s where our food comes from. Then if the land is healthy, the rivers are healthy. The cycle is extremely important.”
Eady Manawaiti gives the thumbs up on his farm.
