Story: Farming in the economy

James Wattie started his business canning fruit in 1934, and in 1936 he added a selection of vegetables. The business expanded in Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne. In 1955 the company began quick-freezing peas. By the end of the 1950s Wattie’s was a major exporter of canned and frozen produce. These workers are inspecting peas in the Hastings factory in January 1948.