Company History
The start of KPH Transport - 1994
KPH Transport was founded in 1994 by Brett Wharfe as a transport arm of NZ Hothouse and the packhouse KPH, as it was then.
The first form of transport for his tomatoes was a 1970 Ford Transit truck purchased from his Father in the early 1990’s.
This small truck still is used around the glasshouses to this day.
1997 - 2000
As the tomato business grew, so did the need for more transport options.
A van and a 4 x 2 Isuzu metro truck was purchased, followed closely by another 4 x 2 Hino.
The first bigger unit followed soon after, a 360hp 8 x 4 Hino. This had a Roadmaster body and was fitted with the very first Thermo King chiller unit.
A second hand Dommet trailer was the next to be added to the fleet, which was pulled by the Hino.
2001 - 2002
In 2001, KPH bought its first Scania, with Roadmaster custom-building the trailer. This was the company’s first true heavy-duty truck.
As larger grocery groups required chilled bodies, KPH expanded its services to other growers. While many early customers were from the Pukekohe region, today KPH serves clients nationwide.
Shortly after, a second Scania truck and trailer was added to the fleet.
2003 - 2012
Over the next 10 years we added a new truck and trailer each year to have a total of around 10 units in 2013.
Our fleet's primary business was delivering NZ Hothouse produce to the Auckland Markets and southbound to the Progressive DC in Wellington every Friday and Sunday mornings.
2012 - 2013
With the ability to provide great service into the Markets and supermarket DC's, the decision was made to start canvasing local growers and larger markets to expand our customer base.
This was the start of KPH becoming a standalone produce carrier.
2014
KPH expanded its operations with the opening of a depot in Palmerston North.
Over time, this site has grown into one of the company’s key hubs, servicing clients across Wellington, the Wairarapa, and surrounding regions.
Alongside our main Auckland hub, Palmerston North forms the backbone of KPH’s nationwide network, delivering reliable service to all our customers.
2015
In 2015 we partnered up with Talley's Group. The joint venture runs a daily service into the South Island 7 days a week and offers an overnight service.
This is one of our core services along with daily runs between Wellington, Palmerston North, Hamilton and Auckland.
From many of these areas we run satellite services into regions such as Tauranga, Rotorua, Wairoa, Gisborne, Hastings and many more.
There are now very few parts of the country that KPH cannot provde service to.
Today
Fresh to the door is the minimum requirement for KPH on a day to day basis.
Imperative to the success of this is our continued investment in fleet technologies such as GPS equipment, in-cab cameras, and online management systems that are available with real time data.
We are committed to continually updating our equipment and procedures to provide a premium service for our customers.