Fruit and veges on the south coast — find out what it takes our growers to get produce from paddock to plate

With so much focus on livestock and grain producers, the Albany Advertiser has checked in with the quiet achievers in our fruit and vegetable industry. There are dozens of growers in the region, specialising in a variety of fruit and vegies that they take from their paddocks to your plate. Each with unique farming systems, affected by different problems, and favouring different weather conditions, they are all part of the region’s rich agricultural production. Today, we take you to three of these farms and look at what goes into getting their produce to market. EDEN GATE BLUEBERRIES Andre Roy and Amanda Noack bought WA’s first blueberry farm in 2004. They have watched the industry change as growing the fruit has become more popular, and today they grow 15 varieties of blueberries at their farm in Youngs Siding. “It was initially established in 1983 after quite a bit of research to find the ideal blueberry growing conditions — acid-free draining soil, plenty of water, protected from strong winds, and prone to frosts in the winter,” Mr Roy said. “Although now a small farm compared to all those started by people who have got on the blueberry bandwagon, it will always be WA’s first blueberry farm.” Their blueberries start budding at the end of June, with the first pick of their harvest in mid-November. Harvest continues until mid-March, picked by hand, one by one. The berries don’t ripen simultaneously, making them expensive to pick. “We are still producing some of the older, more flavoursome, and more labour-intensive varieties for local consumption without pesticides in the great Great Southern fresh air,” Mr Roy said. They used to offer a self-pick system, but they found too many people were eating the berries straight off the bush for free. What might surprise some people is their unique form of weed control. “Some years back, we decided to introduce a few guinea pigs to the farm to see if they would eat weeds and grass,” he said. “They do — with a vengeance. “The farm is netted and electrified to prevent birds from eating the blueberries, so the piggies are also protected from raptors. “Consequently, they can reproduce at an alarming rate, so we now have more than 200.” Unlike many other forms of farming, he said they often did not know how their season was going until it was over. “So much depends on the weather and our irrigation,” he said. “The recent rains have drained away quickly, although Wilson Inlet was getting close to Eden Road before it was opened early in June. Blueberries don’t suffer much from pests and diseases, but late frosts can do a lot of damage.” While they have relied on backpackers, Mr Roy said they had not been affected by the worker shortage. “Luckily, for the last season, we had a full complement of employees,” he said. “An advantage of being a relatively small farm is that we don’t need 50 pickers all at once, which means we have not suffered from the lack of seasonal workers.” They have diversified into micro-greens and edible flowers, as well as having orchard produce, such as figs, citrus and nectarines. These days, they sell directly from farm-gate from December to February, as well as stocking restaurants and hosting a stall at the Albany Farmers Market. “We have been loading up the car with fresh and frozen blueberries and our blueberry products nearly every Friday for the last 16 years and setting it all up early every Saturday morning,” Ms Noack said. “We supplied major restaurants in Perth and Margaret River and significant wineries with fresh blueberries and micro-greens for several years until others got on that particular bandwagon. “Our blueberry preserves were sold in Perth and surroundings and we continue to make our range of blueberry jam, blueberry velvet (topping), blueberry chutney, blueberry vinaigrette, blueberry vinegar, blueberry liqueur and blueberry cordial. “We have cut back to focusing on our local market, partly due to logistics and age — Andre will be 76 shortly.” They also have a deep appreciation for their local customers. “We have come to know our regular customers as friends, share their ups and downs, and ours too,” Ms Noack said. “COVID-19 has probably increased people’s interest in locally produced food and in supporting local businesses.” GP AYRES & SONS Growing potatoes has been in the Ayres family for generations. The first of the Ayres family, George, arrived in Australia in 1912, growing vegetables to send via train after World War I. The family soon specialised in potatoes, and from 1950 until now, they have been national leaders in the niche market of seed potatoes. The farm is now run by third-generation potato grower Collin and his son Chris, growing more than 100ha of seed potatoes to produce around 3500 tonnes a year. They grow a whopping 65 varieties of potatoes for fresh market and crisping markets across the country. While other forms of agriculture have suffered from heavy rains on the south coast this winter, Chris Ayres said the wet weather was just what the doctor ordered. “The rain has been good this season. Really, we are back to a normal Albany winter that we haven’t seen for many years,” he said. The potatoes are sown from September and harvested from January to May. The family run three Grimme harvesters, and bought Australia’s first Visar Optical Sorting machine from Switzerland for grading, which sizes the unwashed seed potatoes. “The geography of Albany makes seed potato production ideal — we are far from most cereal crops that have pests,” Chris Ayres said. “And far from the fresh market potato crop, the seed scheme of WA I believe is one of the cleanest around the world.” Typically, the biggest issues they face are cheap imports with no quality control and pesticide traceability. However, Chris Ayres said the current seasonal worker shortage was an emerging challenge. “The labour shortage is facing all growers at the moment, with the State and Federal Governments not making it any easier,” he said. “Seasonal workers are short and it is going to get difficult. It is going to affect a lot of businesses, and employers are going to find it tough and endure more hours than they should.” For him, there needs to be more investment in agricultural pathways for young West Australians. “Mining and building trades are the only ones that get the real government support because the mining sector is holding WA up in these COVID-19 times,” he said. “But at the end of the day, the European governments have always valued their growers due to running out of food years ago to feed their people “Australia has always had plenty of food to go around.” BATHGATE FARMS Vegetable farming was never part of the grand plan for Andrew and Jocelyn Bathgate. The family bought a small farm near Albany in 2005, and their vegetable patch got bigger over time, to the point where they started selling surplus vegetables through the Albany Farmers Markers and to restaurants. Today, they grow an array of vegetables all year round to meet local demand, still at markets and restaurants, with a focus on what they enjoy eating, namely root vegetables, salad vegetables and brassicas. Planting and harvesting are done by hand, an approach they consider the most economic. A good year for their crops is a dry year, which makes this year the worst autumn and winter they have had, according to Mr Bathgate. “Our best season was a few years back when we received half of the average rainfall for the year,” he said. “So when the broadacre farmers are complaining about poor conditions, we are enjoying the good growing conditions. “There are large fluctuations in yields, depending on the weather. “The early flooding resulted in crop losses, and it is unlikely to improve until late spring.” Most of their lines are grown with minimal herbicides or pesticides and minimal irrigation. Most pesticide treatments are organic. Mr Bathgate said Albany was well-suited to their style of farming. “The soils we farm are mainly peat and heavy clay, which both contain a lot of soil water so not much irrigation is required,” he said. “The current crop of carrots being sold were planted last September and they have received no irrigation at all. “Albany has mild summers, so we can grow crops most of the years. “We also don’t suffer the pressure of insect pests that many vegetable growers suffer in other (warmer) parts of the State.” As for the obstacles they face, the two biggest are information accessibility and government red tape. “Successful farming is extremely complicated. Farmers need to be experts in financial management, marketing, crop nutrition, management of plant diseases and soil health, post-harvest management, logistics to name a few,” Mr Bathgate said. “The demand for information is immense and not very well provided by the private sector. “The other major issue is government red tape. “Regulations are implemented without any reference to the cost on small business or the extent to which the public benefit. “Compliance with the multitude of regulations is very challenging and is an ongoing threat to the viability of small businesses.” And the best things about growing in the region? Mr Bathgate said one of the bonuses was the local support. “Perhaps the major advantage of farming in the Great Southern is we have such a strong customer base,” he said. “Our approach to farming is motivated by our interest in making connections with people who are interested in food. “There is a strong sense of community at the Albany Farmers Market and the support from customers makes it easier to persist in adverse circumstance and awful weather.”