Top seed

It’s a special thing to read through the ingredients on a Topflite bag and know exactly where each one was grown. For us, this close connection with the land is in our DNA. 

Back in 1975, our family business began with just one main crop – sunflower seeds that quickly found fans among New Zealand’s aviary bird breeders. 

After 50 years of harvests, our founding farm is still most recognised for its limelight-hogging sunflowers each summer. These days, however, a bounty of other Topflite feed products also begin life in our North Otago soils, as seeds and grains raised by Rosedale Farm and our network of growing partners.

It began with a flap

Thanks to the quality of Ōamaru soils (and family knowledge of how to get the best possible crops from this soil), Topflite’s founding farm at Rosedale could grow highly nutritious seed chock full of the vitamins and minerals birds need. The seed’s nutritional profile appealed strongly to bird breeders who, for a long time, had only been able to access imported seed which was heat-treated, and as a result, depleted of essential micronutrients.

The results of feeding fresh, New Zealand raised seed became evident in the health of the breeders’ birds, and word spread. 

Since this early success the range of crops has expanded far beyond sunflowers, and our network of growers with it. Pets of all stripes now nibble on feed made from grass, grain and seeds grown in the lower South Island. Here are just a few of the crops that go from paddock to plate (or feed bowl, bird feeder and chicken coop as the case may be). 

Grown by Topflite’s founding farm | Rosedale Farm

Canary seed

This golden, glossy seed is a key ingredient in seed mixes for aviary and wild birds. The canary grass plant is native to the Canary Islands (no surprises there) and produces a seed packed full of quality carbohydrates and proteins for birds. As a shallow rooted plant, it likes a cool, damp growing environment which is perhaps why North Otago has become one of New Zealand’s largest producers of canary seed. You’ll find these little gems  in Scratch & Lay, Quail Mix, Seed Bells as well as by the sackful.

Sunflower seed

It’s the darling of the crop farming world, aesthetically speaking, and ours certainly draw their fair share of attention! The sunflowers grown today come from seed stores that have been selected and saved for over 50 years now. Each year seeds are saved from the plants that have the right attributes: not too tall, with a single flower that curves and bends over (so birds can’t easily get at it) and a full head of seed. The resulting sunflower seeds, grown on Rosedale Farm, can be found in Hen Health Tonic, Scratch & Lay and Soak & Sprout, to name a few. 

Wheat 

We’re proud to say that all ingredients in our best-selling Scratch & Lay poultry feed are grown in New Zealand, and many of them, on Rosedale Farm. Wheat is central to the mix, and we also sell it as a single ingredient too. In its whole form, wheat is a tasty and nutritious source of carbohydrate that provides chickens with the get-up-and-go to get-up-and-go-lay some eggs.

Barley

Rosedale Farm’s fields of gold also produce delicious, energy-rich barley for aviary bird and poultry mixes. New Zealand’s pet rabbits and guinea pigs also benefit from Rosedale’s barley crops. After the combine harvester has rubbed all the seeds out, the barley stalks are dried and go into our bedding straw for keeping pet rabbits and guinea pigs clean, cosy and dry. 

Grown by our partners

As demand for our products increased, Topflite’s founding farm was faced with a dilemma. We could have grown more crops. But, to keep the soil healthy and production sustainable, we decided to contract some of our growing.

That’s because, just like a vegetable garden, farmers need to rotate their crops. If you grow potatoes in the same soil year after year it becomes susceptible to pests, disease and weeds. Likewise, but on a much grander scale, we need to grow different crops in our paddocks each year to keep a healthy balance of microorganisms in the soil.

To help us do that, we’ve got a network of local growers who produce a range of other seeds and grains for us. 

This is a huge asset to our work. We’re one of the few pet food producers in New Zealand that can pop in to see how a crop is coming along. We count ourselves very lucky to have cultivation partners committed to keeping the home-grown quality of our products at its very best. 

Linseed

Otherwise known as ‘flax seed’ (but not the flax that tūī love to drink nectar from, confusing, we know)  linseed contains many beneficial nutrients such as protein, fibre and omega-3 fatty acids. It makes bird plumage shine and it is often fed during moulting or prior to shows.

Oilseed rape

This crop is a member of the brassica family and is often grown to be pressed for cooking oil. It’s very low in saturated fat and includes plenty of essential fatty acids, such as the omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid (ALA).

Maple peas and blue peas

Locally grown peas are the star of our Soak & Sprout and Super Sprout seed mixes. Feeding sprouted seeds to birds creates access to extra amino acids, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals for optimum avian health.

Oats

Oats are a powerhouse of energy for poultry and aviary birds, just as they are for humans! We use locally grown oats in Lucky Duck, Poultry Pecker and our Gourmet Hanging Treats for wild birds, among many other products.

Maize

Maize is a cereal crop with rich concentrations of starch. For poultry and large aviary birds, it makes an excellent source of energy especially when it’s kibbled (cracked) to allow easy digestion. You’ll spot it in lots of our poultry products and we also sell kibbled maize in 20kg sacks.