Our History

Hautapu Pine, a testament to a 60+ year legacy in the wood industry, stands proudly as a family-owned company founded by Trevor Benson. Embarking on his journey in the early 1960s armed only with a chainsaw and an axe, Trevor’s humble beginnings as a ‘man and a chainsaw for hire’ set the foundation for Hautapu Pine’s rich history.

Around 1965, Trevor sensed an opportunity to cut battens in the Taihape district, leading him to commission the building of a portable batten mill designed by a local engineering firm and mounted on an old truck chassis. With a petrol TK Bedford truck, Trevor travelled around farms, felling trees to mill into battens with the assistance of his Bristol 25 bulldozer.

In 1972, a pivotal moment saw Trevor acquiring a disused abattoir just north of Taihape, where he established the batten mill. His hard work and dedication manifested as he continued to personally fell trees and transport logs to the mill with his trusty Bedford truck. The ’70s marked the recognition of the potential to produce posts, leading Trevor to hand-peel posts before progressing to a borrowed tractor-driven peeler. A significant leap in 1983 saw the acquisition of a Morbark peeler, becoming a permanent fixture at the abattoir.

The post mill setup, though basic, thrived, with air-drying posts stacked for treatment.  Up until 1984 all the posts were sold locally, but the closure of a nearby prison which produced posts for MSD Spiers at Tangiwai, created the opportunity to start the wholesale sale of posts. The growth of the business over the next four years necessitated a move to the current site on State Highway 1 in 1988.

In 2002, a state-of-the-art mill was erected on the current site, lauded as the most efficient post mill in NZ upon its opening. Adaptability has been a constant theme over the last two decades, with Hautapu Pine evolving to meet demand and embrace technological changes.

While Trevor now enjoys retirement, his legacy lives on through the management of Hautapu Pine by his three children – Mark, Chris and Susan. Today, Hautapu Pine continues to be a beacon of innovation and quality in the roundwood industry.