City Girl in a Country World
Me with Alex, Richard, James & Seeker the dog
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Posts Tagged ‘Australian Year of the Farmer’
This Christmas as you shop for your festive feast take the time to read the labels and support Australian farmers.
Consider it your gift to the country’s agricultural community.
Don’t buy Californian red onions, when Australian onions will do. Stay away from imported ham, seek out Australian-produced pork instead.
Ask your butcher – ‘Was this turkey bred in Australia?’
Ditto seafood.
Offer your guests a fruit platter of tropical Australian fruit and a plate of roasted local veggies.
Eat what’s in season and try to source your food close to the place of origin. Imagine how much fresher your locally-grown vegetables will be than the veg that have been shipped in from overseas.
These are the simple ways you can support the country’s farming community.
If it’s a choice of cheap supermarket milk or the more expensive branded milk, consider spending a couple of dollars more, in the knowledge that your decision will support a viable and sustainable dairy industry.
According to the Australian Bureau of Agricultural Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES), the average Australian drank 104-litres of milk and ate 32kg of beef, 25kg of pork and ham and 9kg of lamb in the 2011-12 financial year.
Imagine if all of that food consumed had been grown and raised in Australia?
Australian agriculture – like many industries – is going through a time of change. Many large, and once-strong businesses, are finding themselves in financial trouble, the result of rising costs, a high Australian dollar and increased competition from foreign imports.
You’re probably wondering, ‘What’s that mean for me?’
BANANA prices are falling – they’re now selling for under $8/kg.
You can probably hear the collective sigh of relief being breathed by mums around the country.
That school lunch staple is back on the shopping list – Praise be to the Lunchbox God.
New research by Nielsen Australia shows that when banana prices soared in the aftermath of Cyclone Yasi, banana household penetration fell from around 70 -75 per cent to as low as 20-25 per cent.
What that means in normal English is that usually 75 per cent of households buy bananas but when the price/kg rose to $15 because the cyclone wiped out most of the North Queensland plantations, only 25per cent of Australia households bought them.
We’re a fickle customer and we decided to buy other fruit instead – strawberries, apples, pears, oranges and grapes were the big winners … apparently.
Lately I’ve spent many hours thinking about the price of fruit and veg … I’m married to a vegetable farmer so it affects our household budget a bit more than usual.
After my many hours of reflection what I can’t understand is why we – as a nation – are so price sensitive when it comes to our fresh produce?
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