Forest Lodge Orchard Media Features

It’s not every day you see a tractor at a racetrack—but then again, this isn’t your average orchard. When we first rolled the Monarch MK-V electric tractor onto the orchard, we never imagined it would end up setting a lap time at Highlands Motorsport Park. But here we are, with our fully electric workhorse not just turning soil, but turning heads on the track and making it onto TVNZ’s Breakfast Show in the process.

We’ve had our fair share of cameras on the orchard over the past few years, but there was something pretty special about hosting Rachel Parkin and the Seven Sharp team earlier this year.

The team are extremely honoured to be featured on the latest season of A New Zealand Food Story with well-known Kiwi chef Ben Bayly. The episode airs 12 July on TVNZ 1, and it’s a real honour to have Forest Lodge Orchard highlighted alongside some of Aotearoa’s most innovative food producers.

We were very excited to be featured in a new video by EECA, all about how farms across New Zealand are switching on to solar power and seeing real benefits. The video highlights both Kawaiwai Dairies and us here at Forest Lodge, showing how solar and battery systems are helping us cut costs, boost energy independence, and move toward a lower-carbon future. On our orchard, solar is at the heart of everything we do. And with 160kW of solar and 300kWh of battery storage, we generate way more power than we use so we often send this extra power back to the grid.

As featured in the Otago Daily Times, we’ve officially given one of New Zealand’s most iconic farm vehicles, the trusty Toyota Hilux, a fully electric second life.

It’s always great to see the conversation around electric farming gaining momentum, and we were especially proud to be featured in the Otago Daily Times in a piece focused on the energy transition happening across New Zealand.

Mike Casey introduces electric frost-fighting fans and modified electric golf carts at his cherry orchard in Cromwell, aiming for a carbon-neutral operation and showcasing renewable energy benefits.

Mike Casey operates a zero-fossil-fuel cherry orchard, using advanced engineering and computer code to achieve full electrification, featured in the Southern Lens series for its sustainable impact.

Mike Casey's zero-fossil-fuel cherry orchard near Lake Dunstan uses advanced engineering and computer code for full electrification, showcased in the Southern Lens series for its sustainable practices.

Mike Casey introduces electric frost-fighting fans and modified electric golf carts at his cherry orchard in Cromwell, aiming for a carbon-neutral operation and showcasing renewable energy benefits.

Mike Casey introduces electric frost-fighting fans and other electric machinery at his cherry orchard in Cromwell, aiming for a carbon-neutral operation and demonstrating renewable energy benefits.

Forest Lodge Orchard, led by Mike and Rebecca Casey, aims for a fully electric operation using solar power and electric machinery, targeting zero fossil fuels and net zero energy bills.

Forest Lodge Orchard, led by Mike and Rebecca Casey, aims for a fully electric operation using solar power and electric machinery, targeting zero fossil fuels and net zero energy bills.

The Caseys have converted their cherry orchard to an all-electric operation, significantly reducing costs and emissions. They use solar and battery systems combined with grid power, leading to near-zero energy bills.

The Caseys and their partners converted Forest Lodge Orchard to an all-electric operation, significantly reducing costs and emissions. They use solar and battery systems combined with grid power, leading to near-zero energy bills.

Forest Lodge Orchard won a national award for its renewable electric system, highlighting their innovative use of solar power and efforts to reduce fossil fuel use.

The article announces the finalists for the 2021 Sustainable Business Awards, highlighting Forest Lodge Orchard for its sustainable practices.