The government of Aotearoa / New Zealand will provide a $950,000 loan through the Regional Infrastructure Fund to help a Māori trust near Hāwera upgrade on-farm infrastructure and transition to active land management.

The Omuturangi 6E & 7A Ahu Whenua Trust, which oversees 84 hectares on behalf of 290 owners, will also contribute $120,000 to the project.

The funding will be used to build a new dairy shed and increase milking capacity, stock numbers, and milk production, improving profitability by up to 25 per cent.

Without the upgrade, the land would have reverted to lower-value livestock grazing due to the current dairy shed reaching the end of its useful life.

Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka, of the Mōkai Pātea, Whanganui, Taranaki iwi's said the investment would also support training, skills development and self-governance aspirations.

"In the longer term, the trust's aspirations are to self-govern and manage their whenua Māori more profitably," Mr Potaka said.

"They will also use the farm to train their people in commercial farming."

New Zealand Minister for Rural Communities Mark Patterson said the project would lift the trust's farming capacity and benefit the wider economy through increased output and regional investment.

"The loan will support the trust to upgrade essential on‑farm infrastructure and move from passive leasing of its land to more active farm management," Mr Patterson said.

"These upgrades will allow the trust to increase its milking capacity, lift stock numbers and boost milk production and profitability by up to 25 per cent."

The Regional Infrastructure Fund supports projects that unlock regional economic development and provide investment where funding is otherwise unavailable.

Local businesses will be engaged in the construction and operations, with the new dairy shed expected to be operational later in 2026.