Clutha Mayor Bryan Cadogan said he had been "heartened" by the resilience shown within the rural business sector during the recent Covid-19 lockdown, and believed Clutha was well placed to help kick start a wider economic recovery in the south.
"In no way am I belittling anybody’s individual financial situation, as we know there are those who are suffering and who will need all the help available as we come out of this.
"But looking at the bigger picture, we have several key industries here in Clutha that have continued to work flat out during lockdown, meaning we’re positioned better than many to get things moving again."
Among those Mr Cadogan singled out for praise was Silver Fern Farms, which runs the Finegand freezing works just outside Balclutha.
Finegand employed 1200 staff at peak season, and was able to continue running at 50% to 70% capacity during lockdown, a spokesman said.
Although the latest production figures were unavailable, the spokesman drew comparisons with last year’s results, and said the company as a whole was "well positioned to rebound from the current environment".
"Finegand last year generated over $330million in export earnings, paid $55.5million in wages, and $275million in livestock payments to farmers. As well as those indirect benefits to the South Otago economy, we also spent about $15million directly on local businesses for goods and services.
"It’s been a privilege to continue working through the lockdown, and we believe the primary sector could be a significant part of New Zealand’s renaissance."
Mr Cadogan said an inadvertent side effect of the Covid-19 crisis could be the resolution of long-standing employment issues for Clutha.
"For the first time in a while, we have the opportunity to attract those with specific skills to the district, and we’ll be working hard to contribute to the wider national perspective by helping some of those who’ve lost employment elsewhere."
That could involve an employer "speed dating" event, he said.
"We need to take stock as we move out of lockdown, but there are encouraging opportunities locally.
"We’d like to do our bit towards a wider economic recovery."
