Raetihi struggles two years after Winstone mill closures
Raetihi, a central North Island town of 1100, is still reeling from the September 2024 closure of Karioi pulp mill and Tangiwai sawmill, which cost 230 jobs.
What happened
Raetihi has held on since Winstone Pulp International closed the Karioi pulp mill and Tangiwai sawmill on 10 September 2024, but jobs remain scarce, rents high and shops shuttered. The closures cut 230 jobs across the region, ending what former mill operator Turuhia Edmonds calls
Key facts
- Karioi pulp mill and Tangiwai sawmill closed 10 September 2024
- 230 jobs lost across the region
- Ngā Waihua o Paerangi Trust monitored 186 of 213 former workers: 19 now in Australia, 92 living or working outside Ruapehu district
- Raetihi primary school roll fell from 300 to 89
- Median personal income in Raetihi $33,200 in 2023 Census, $8300 below national figure
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Coverage across the news outlets we track, as at publication.
What outlets are saying
NZ Herald
Election 2026: Small town struggles – Raetihi battles Winstone mill closures aftermath
Mill closures wiped out 230 high-paid jobs across the region and hit Raetihi hard.
Newstalk ZB
Election 2026: Small town struggles – Raetihi battles Winstone mill closures aftermath
Two years on from the mill closures, Raetihi is holding on but jobs in the small central North Island town are scarce, rents are high and shops are empty. With an election looming, locals tell Mike Scott they don’t expect…