Centuries ago, Ngāi Tahu moved south from Te Ika a Māui (the North Island) to forge a new life and explore new opportunities in Te Waipounamu (the South Island). Through warfare, intermarriage, and alliances with Ngāti Māmoe and Waitaha, Ngāi Tahu gained access to resources from all over the island. From the forests, plains, and surrounding islands they gathered tītī (muttonbird), kererū, and weka. From the rivers they gathered inanga (whitebait), tuna (eel), and pounamu (greenstone); and from the seas kōura (crayfish), pāua (abalone), and tio (oysters) to name a few.

Our relationship with the landscape shapes our tribal identity. However, through colonisation and the land sales, our people became increasingly disconnected from our lands and were limited in our ability to uphold our kaitiaki (custodian) responsibilities.

For seven generations Ngāi Tahu fought for redress. The quest for justice resulted in the Ngāi Tahu Settlement of 1998, which helped forge the next stage of our tribal journey and provided a base to build a prosperous future for our people. A significant component of the Settlement was the return of land and with it, our ability to return to the places where our ancestors once walked, worked the land and fished the waterways. Farming and fishing are in our blood, and it has always been an aspiration to continue to foster this in younger generations.

As early as the 1950s, the Ngaitahu Māori Trust Board was investigating options to purchase suitable land near Kaiapoi to train young Māori as dairy farmers.

Ngāi Tahu Farming was formally established in 2015 bringing together farming and forestry businesses which were originally divisions of Ngāi Tahu Property.