Here’s what hospo could look like in 2050 if the world is a hellscape of climate shithousery – report

by Vincent Heeringa | Mar 31, 2023 | Opinion

Imagining the future used to be the job of miserable sci-fi writers. Think killer robots, toxic fungi, alien probes. But stand aside, Asimov. Thanks to new government rules, all New Zealand industries must now engage in some crystal-ball gazing to imagine how they...

Worst meal I’ve ever had: the night we got engaged

by Vincent Heeringa | Mar 23, 2023 | Opinion

News that high school children were served raw chicken for lunch took me right back to 1990 and the worst meal of my life. Earlier this month students at Kaitaia High School had to chuck out their sandwiches and then chuck out their guts in a makeshift triage. They’d...

Hawke’s Bay winemakers shift focus to harvest, even as Gabrielle’s devastation remains

by Vincent Heeringa | Mar 2, 2023 | News

Winemaking will resume at Crab Farm Winery very soon. They just need the manager, Emma Jardine, to collect winemaker, Katie McKellow, from an inflatable boat somewhere near Puketapu. “She’s really keen to get back to work,” laughs Emma, who’s...

The Wrap: The impact of Cyclone Gabrielle on fruit and vegetable growers

by Vincent Heeringa | Feb 24, 2023 | News

The effect of Cyclone Gabrielle on North Island’s horticulture sector is still to be calculated but images of mud-covered orchards and buried machinery tell the story of devastation – and of hope. Overall, the death toll stands at 11. Some 152 people are...

Overcoming oliebollen: how to rise above the childhood trauma of deep-fried oily balls

by Vincent Heeringa | Feb 15, 2023 | Opinion

Food That Changed My Mind: In the first of an occasional series we explore foods we misunderstood, misrepresented or mansplained away. Today Vincent revisits oliebollen.   What is it: Literally translated as ‘oily balls’, Oliebollen are an egg-and-flour batter...