Business By Waikato businessman Andy West

Arguably, the Waikato region is New Zealand's
best-kept secret.

Even when removing the Coromandel and Lake Taupo from its geography, it embraces beaches, surf, rivers, volcanoes, mountains, hills and plains; nestled within are delightful villages like Pirongia, enchanting small towns like Te Aroha, vibrant large ones like Cambridge and a genuine city.

Specific and valued tourism attractions like Waitomo and strenuous, professional efforts to support tourism to one side, however, and the Waikato doesn't really do it. We do have landscapes that tourists would love, but other regions have more spectacular ones. How to counter that?

Just look at another great centre of dairying – Normandy in France. Frankly, the Normandy landscape isn't that distinctive, yet it is a renowned centre of tourism. What does it offer – apart from battlefield tours? Normandy offers what the Waikato could offer; an artisan dairy industry that over centuries has crafted world famous, branded cheeses under powerful appellations; a superb culinary experience and a love of hedgerows and trees.

We have a world-famous dairy industry. We are renowned for high quality food and beverages. We have a beautiful landscape. What is more, we produce copious volumes of cheese and can now produce elite, unpasteurised cheeses. We have shown that in just two decades, we can create world famous culinary brands – in our wines. It wouldn't take much for us to stop cutting down graceful and distinctive trees and hedgerows and to start planting and nurturing them again. Plus we have the mystique of Pirongia, Te Aroha and Cambridge.

Can the Waikato not then be the Normandy of the Southern Hemisphere? After all we even have the battle fields.