Spahn said the paid service would offer “peace of mind” to verified, licensed users, who could browse private properties and book hunting land with accommodation and safe parking.
About 600 farm owners and managers nationwide had pre-registered, Spahn said.
Relations and digital content manager Philipp Spahn says Huntable is a “win-win” for pest control and hunters.
Accessing private hunting land in regions such as Whanganui had not been easy, he said.
“And that’s exactly where Huntable comes into play.”
The Whanganui District has more than 166,000ha of public conservation land for hunting by permit, including the Whanganui National Park and the Waitōtara Conservation Area.
Whanganui River Hunting and Food Festival co-founder Chris Kumeroa (Taranaki, Tūwharetoa, Whanganui, Ngāti Hine) said it was a “prime spot” for hunters from surrounding cities.
“There’s an abundance of animals and they’re a pest as well as a food source.”
“We’ve got lots of land blocks across our region, more than 200,000 acres [80,000ha] of Māori-owned blocks.”
It was challenging to get Māori on to their land blocks to hunt, Kumeroa said.
“Sometimes they don’t know where they belong. I’ve got a cousin up in South Auckland, he’s aware he comes from Whanganui, but he’s not sure which blocks he can access.”
Te Awanui a Rua Trust director Anahera Ngataierua TeKere Hose said some Māori shareholders were “lucky” to hunt on their land.
“They find it really restrictive hunting on iwi land because they’re not established iwi blocks.
“Established meaning that most Māori lands don’t have their lands set up for hunting purposes due to the health and safety requirements – licensing and remote access.
“They’ve got shareholder hunts but that’s hardly anything; that’s only one weekend a year. Otherwise, they’re on DoC [Department of Conservation] land.”
Under current health and safety laws, landowners could be liable when hunters are injured on their properties.
Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden announced health and safety reforms in April last year.
They included removing liability for land owners and managers when recreation-related accidents – such as through hunting, biking or outdoor climbing – occur on their land, unless they result from their own work.
The change will come into force on April 1 next year.
Spahn said there were many reasons people wanted to hunt on private land, particularly beginners and those hunting with children.
“You know you’re not going to run into any other hunters or upset anyone.”
“You can definitely hit up DoC land and go hunting but, again, you’re contending with other hunters, you’re contending with having to figure out exactly where to go.
“You never exactly know, is it safe to leave your car, are you going to come back to have your window smashed in?
“With public land, if it’s easy to get to, it’ll be hunted a lot.”
Spahn said trophy-hunting communities were “healthy” but too expensive for many recreational hunters.
“They don’t want to fork out $10,000 for a stag or $6000 for a helicopter hunt … then you’re looking at, basically, farms.
“That’s just not being covered at the moment.”
The app would operate nationwide, focusing on the central North Island.
“The Hawke’s Bay region is really popular,” Spahn said.
Whanganui and Taranaki were popular for their abundance of fallow deer, he said.
The Huntable app would be regulated with verification for landowners and hunters, who must hold a firearms licence.
An artificial intelligence (AI) tool would eventually be introduced to manage verifications.
Spahn’s role entails visiting properties to check their accommodation and animals, he said.
“I actually stay out there for a night or two, I go for a hunt, and so I kind of get to know these properties intimately.”
Huntable’s developers had not yet consulted owners of Māori-owned land blocks in Whanganui, Spahn said.
“But we definitely would love to have the conversation.”
Kumeroa said it was important to consider who was developing the app, its objectives and whether Māori were involved in its development.
“If they gain access to a particular block, will that necessarily equate to superseding our people getting access?
“I’m really cautious and conscious that it doesn’t undermine an already challenging world.”
Spahn said the company hoped to launch the app within the next few weeks.
“We’re actively looking for more farms to come on board.”
Noam Mānuka Lazarus (Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara) is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle.