Nga Tangata o Tomoana

Tomoana Freezing Works

all photos are scans taken from original 35mm negatives

For 115 years Tomoana Freezing Works played a major role in the meat processing industry in Hawkes Bay and New Zealand and contributed hugely to the growth of Hastings as a city. On Friday the 19th of August 1994 Wedell New Zealand went into receivership, the receivership forced the closure of Wedell Tomoana and four other Wedell freezing works around the country. When Tomoana closed it was Hawkes Bay largest employer with many families having worked at the plant for multiple generations. In the peak of the season, Tomoana ran six chains plus follow on departments, beef house and follow on departments, boning room and freezers, around 1300 people were working at the plant at the time of the closure and another 690 expecting to start the season in November. It’s closure came as a huge blow to the workers and the community. The job paid well but we worked hard in what was a repetitive and dirty job, the great redeeming factor was the people that you worked with, special people and friends, that really made Tomoana a great time in my life. Please enjoy these photos and the memories of those special people that worked on the top floor, sadly there are faces in these photos that are no longer with us and these photos serve as a great reminder of them and the great times we shared. I will post photos up as I process them from my archives along with others that have come into my possession.

October 7, 2014December 3, 2014 by jak0118 Categories: TomoanaTags: Tomoana 1 Comment