Carmen Pearce-Brown and husband, Todd Brown, from Nicholls in the Australian Capital Territory, sell Honey Delight gourmet honeys, honeycomb, honey sweets, and honey skin care products at their happy market stall. Carmen says you will only find the "cream of the crop" Honey Delight products at the Capital Region Farmer's Market in Canberra. Honey Delight is the product of three generations of beekeepers. Carmen's brother, David Walker, is an apiarist based in Port Macquarie and is a third generation beekeeper. His bees are located as far south as Boorowa and Cowra in New South Wales. Carmen and Todd's teenage children are also actively involved in the apiary and the venture. Honey Delight are excited to announce the launch of their 'active' tea tree honey. New Zealand Manuka Honey is from the plant species Leptospermum scoparium. In Australia, we have exactly the same the same plant, the difference is that in Australia we call it Tea Tree. Scientific Studies have found that some Australian Tea Tree honey has the same active properties as the New Zealand “Manuka Honey”. Honey Delight active tea tree honey has been tested by the Sydney University and has a rating of 13-18% phenol equivalent. A UMF rating higher than 10 is considered to have a high activity and is highly active against bacteria. This is why it is called active honey, or a therapeutic antibacterial honey. Honey Delight active honey is equivalent to 15+ Manuka Honey. A 500g jar of Honey Delight active honey sells for $20. Allan Dixon and Sharyn Prendergast have much to smile about. This year, they bought the Clyde River Berry Farm, which is located in the hinterland between Batemans Bay and Ulladulla in NSW. Visiting their farm is on my list of things for Peter and I to do in the holidays. I've been berry picking many times before, but I must say I have never seen such enormous blueberries! And the taste, oh my, these berries taste divine! I've just frozen a 500g pack. Frozen blueberries are icy little taste bombs, perfect to snack on during the heat of Summer. The Clyde River Berry Farm is open seven days from 10am to 6pm in December and January, except Christmas Day. There are all kinds of beautiful berries (including youngberries and raspberries), as well as peaches, plums and other seasonal fruits. Here's a couple of bashful young fellows, Wes Johnston and Todd Sheens, from the Torry Hill Orchard in Young, NSW. You'll meet Wes and Todd each Saturday at the Torry Hill Orchard stall at the Capital Region Farmer's Markets. They will be at the markets during cherry season, selling boxes of freshly picked Ron cherries. Peter and I always make a beeline for the stall, as there are also wines, sauces and some yummy cherry pies on sale. The pies are made by a local bakery in Young, using fruit from the Torry Hill Orchard. Buy also from the Torry Hill Orchard farm shop at 537 Cowra Road, Young, telephone 02 6382 5676. Lovely to see apple growers, Gary and Sue Armstrong from the Doonkuna Orchard back at the Capital Region Farmer's Market this morning. The Armstrongs bring crisp, fresh apples from their orchard in Crookwell to the markets. Ginger Gold apples were on show at the Doonkuna stall today... an early 'dessert' variety, according to Sue. Ginger Gold are lovely stewed and served with cereal; and are great for pie making too. Last year, Gary explained to me that he has mixed feelings about the news of the ban being lifted on the importation of New Zealand apples. "Chinese apples and pears are already being sold in Australia, but many people aren't aware," he said. 'The addition of New Zealand apples will have a big impact on the wholesale prices and also saturate the market with a lot of fruit. Supermarkets here are asking too much for [apples], sometimes up to $7.00 or more per kilo, so consumption is down. The Aussie dollar is high, so this affects our exports too'. The new changes to the importation of apples may quite possibly hurt the Australian growers in terms of sales, but Gary also points out the issues with the threat of new diseases. Even more reason to shop for Aussie Apples. Sebastian Nedziak was beaming when he told me that his Gum Tree Pies had won eleven medals at the 2011 Great Aussie Meat Pie Competition just recently: four gold medals and seven silver medals! He and wife, Melinda, hand make their gourmet pies at Yackandandah using locally sourced, best quality vegetables, rump steak, chicken breasts and Brown Brothers wine. The award-winning pies are really, really good and the range includes steak and red wine; lamb and mint jelly; creamy cauliflower; curry pumpkin; and chicken and vegetables, among many others. Pick up your pies hot and ready to eat, or take home freshly made pies ready to either bake or freeze. You will find Gum Tree Pies at the Capital Region Farmer’s Market and Southside Farmer’s Market in Canberra; Yackandandah Lions Club Market; and various other markets. Dominic and Mareeta Torcaso travel a long way from their property in Myrtleford, Victoria, to get to the Capital Region Farmer's Markets in Canberra every Saturday. But then I would happily travel a long way to buy their beautiful fresh produce! The Torcasos have been selling their produce at Farmer's Markets for the last three or four years. You will find them at the Hume Murray Food Bowl, Beechworth, Rutherglen and Wangaratta. There are capsicums, chillies, beans, potatoes (Nicola, Pontiac, Dutch Cream and Kipflers), eggplant, gourmet tomatoes and other delicious goodies on their stall. And the couple always greet their lines of customers with big happy smiles! Make sure you ask Dominic about his father's heirloom tomatoes. They taste like REAL tomatoes! Enquiries to mailto:torcasoproduce@hotmail.com The Di Cerbo Family Guiseppe and Magdalena Di Cerbo, together with son Jo are clearly passionate about their produce. "I came to Australia in 1955 and I've been selling at markets since 1958... I once sold five or six semi trailer loads per week," Guiseppe tells me with a rich Italian accent and warm laugh. I really love these people! Their farm is located at Berri in South Australia, so they travel a long way to sell at the Capital Region Farmer's Market in Canberra. The Di Cerbo's bring fresh oranges, mandarins, dried fruits and a variety of vegetables to the market. See here for more information. John Fairley is all smiles. And so he should be. His Country Valley Lush Yoghurt has taken out the 'Champion Yoghurt' title as part of the 2012 Sydney Royal Easter Show. He also nailed Gold for his Organic Lite Milk and Silver for the rest. Well done! The Fairleys have been dairy farmers in the Picton region of New South Wales for 170 years, John being the sixth generation and his son, Tom (who usually mans the stall at EPIC), the seventh. What makes Country Valley Dairy products so special (apart from the great taste!)? 'It's real and natural. There's no processing and whatever comes out the cows go into the milk, cream and yoghurt', John says. Country Valley Dairy Products are available from seven markets, including Warwick Farm Farmer's Markets; Eveleigh Markets in Redfern; Marrickville Markets at Addison Road; Kings Cross Organic Food Market, Fitzroy Gardens; and the Southside Farmers' Markets at Woden CIT Campus in Canberra; and the Camden Grower's Market in Camden. |
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