Saline plants manual aims to help Great Southern growers crack the gourmet food market

Katanning Landcare is giving away free copies of a previously unavailable manual developed to help Great Southern growers produce saline plants for the gourmet food market. The Saline Bush Foods Technical Manual contains in-depth information ranging from species selection to greenhouse set-up and harvest parameters. The 70-page manual was first produced in 2022 to accompany a full-day training course, and is now available publicly for the first time. Co-author and Katanning Landcare officer Ella Maesepp said a less-detailed overview, released publicly in 2022, was well received by saline landowners, nursery growers and the hospitality industry. “The technical manual outlines a wide range of information . . . in greater detail than the overview manual covered,” she said. “Although some of the growing techniques have been refined since the manual was written, much of the content remains relevant.” The production of saline bush foods for the gourmet food industry was fast-tracked through the Federal Government’s Smart Farming Partnerships grants program, launched in 2018. The program saw Katanning farming family the Thompsons, who run the Moojepin Foods brand, partner with Katanning Landcare and Wagoga Gourmet Food Marketers — as well as soil and horticulture experts — to create a paddock-to-plate supply chain. Mrs Maesepp said salinity was an issue facing many Australian farmers. “The project was about seeing if we could find a way to better manage and restore degraded salt land whilst producing a saleable commodity to help secure the economic futures of rural towns, plus produce more food at the same time,” she said. “It was a fantastic success, with ice plant, saltbush, samphire and karkalla now being grown and supplied to restaurants across Australia from the Katanning farm.” Email ella@katanninglandcare.org.au for a digital copy of the technical manual.