A Kiwi-made red meat product range with “tongue-soft” texture for elderly or unwell people has won the 2026 Meat Industry Association Dragon’s Den competition.

The MIA competition challenges Kiwis to develop innovative and practical solutions to enhance export value and advance the country’s red meat sector.

Ron Park, chief executive and founder of Canterbury-based health supplements company Kōrure, was named the winner.

Park is exploring the development of a “Kiwi Tender” range of premium New Zealand red meat products processed to achieve a texture that can be crushed with the tongue without chewing, while retaining the shape, flavour and nutritional density of whole muscle meat.

The core innovation is to adapt the successful Eatender model, developed in Taiwan, to grass-fed meat produced in New Zealand.

This includes developing a local tenderisation protocol, with parameters optimised for grass-fed meat.

Park – known as the “Mussel King” for his work with green-lipped mussels – has been awarded $10,000 to develop a business case and progress his idea into a research project.

Nathan Guy, independent chairman of the Meat Industry Association, said it was the competition’s second year; as with last year, there were many exceptional proposals for research and development.

“Ultimately, our panel of expert judges chose Ron’s proposal because of the opportunities for global interest in applying a uniquely Kiwi innovation to a process which already has a strong foothold in Asia in the hospital and aged care sector.”

Park said he was delighted with the win.

“The grant will enable us to build the business case needed to attract investment and bring this product to market.”

He said Kiwi Tender offered a transformational opportunity for New Zealand’s red meat industry, creating a new premium export product category targeting older adults, the fastest-growing consumer demographic globally.

“By adapting the successful Eatender model to New Zealand’s world-class grass-fed beef and lamb, we can create export-ready products that transform underutilised cuts into high-value senior nutrition solutions.”

Park said more than 333 manufacturers and at least 1000 products now carry Eatender certification, with the global market for easy-to-eat protein sources estimated at $500 billion.

“With support from leading meat processors and academic expertise, we’re really excited about the potential for this project.”

From left to right, top row: Andrew Clark of MPI, Chris Mawson of Ovation, Palmerston North Mayor Grant Smith, Bottom row: Neil Smith of Silver Fern Farms, Dragon's Den winner Ron Park and independent chairman of the Meat Industry Association, Nathan Guy

The Dragon’s Den final took place at the joint MIA-Bioeconomy Science Institute Meat Innovation Workshop in Palmerston North on March 11-12.

The five finalists had five minutes to pitch their ideas to the judging panel, followed by five minutes of Q&A with the judges and audience.

The judging panel featured industry leaders:

• Nathan Guy, independent chairman, Meat Industry Association
• Andrew Clark, investment manager at MPI’s primary sector growth team
• Neil Smith, group manager market access and regulation, Silver Fern Farms
• Chris Mawson, group technical manager, Ovation Ltd.

- Meat Industry Association