Member Spotlight - Alison Bentley, Tikitere Farm

This season we were lucky to connect with Alison Bentley from Tikitere Farm . She produces hazelnuts and beef in Rotorua and has  spent the last year doing research into local food systems. Find out more about her work below, and if you're in the area, support her small business!

How did you get into farming?
Generational - as long as we can trace back my family has grown food. Initially it was feeding the family, then in my parents' generation different members of the family became farmers in business, industrial farmers by default. But my father chose to discontinue use of herbicide in his crop about 25 years ago.
Growing food for the family alongside commercial production is still strong within our family. Two of my daughters are supplementing their purchased food from potted gardens in their rental accommodations :)
I have diversified. I have a small beef farm and a small hazelnut orchard with commercial intent. Also I have two separate mixed fruit orchards, a subtropical corner (north-facing, southern sheltered slope micro climate) and a house vege garden.
I usually grow enough kumara to keep the family going for most of the year, one year I tried scaling up to sell kumara.

What do you like best about farming?
Working with nature - nature is truly amazing when you take notice!!

What do you find to be the hardest part?
1/ Consumers (or "eaters") are very disconnected with food - real produce food (not the processed substances often called food!).
I couldn't sell my kumara because they were "too big" - sure they were the size of small pumpkins, but everyone cuts a pumpkin ... so cut a kumara too ... apparently not!!
I hear people want food traceability, local, etc but because my beef is from a small seasonal farm I don't have continuous supply, the price is a little more, the butchery cuts are not exactly consistent etc ... so people stick with their supermarket habits - their actions are not where their words are!
The effort for me as a small producer, to educate / tell my story / market / my produce destroys the business equation.

2/ The status quo "food system". 
It's incredibly hard for growers of fresh produce to operate financially sustainable businesses unless they are producing on a scale acceptable by the supermarket supply chain.

The "system" is a commercially driven, dominating, engine.
New Zealand is so focused on food exports that our domestic food system has submerged in the wake. 

What kind of supports would you like to see for "small-scale" local food production?
1/ Fresh produce safety protocols that are relevant to locally grown, short supply chain frameworks - not the current large scale, export relevant regulations.
2/ Well designed, collaborative, seasonal, national, marketing campaigns educating consumers ("eaters") about fresh produce grown in "their local" community, including "Know Your Farmer" 

Can you share a bit about the research you recently completed?
I really enjoyed the recent research project I did - A Kellogg Rural Leaders Programme and Lincoln Post Grade certificate.
Interviewing growers was definitely a highlight, and a privilege that they shared aspects of their produce growing operations in detail.
Discovering that international academic literature on advancing agriculture practices aligns with current practices of NZ small growers was very insightful.
In all growers interviewed, no grower had any ambition to scale up.
The discussion that came forth about economies of scale and economies of scope, and diverse systems was really interesting.
Recently released New Zealand research into peri-urban design identifies characteristics of food growers in such zones - current practices of NZ small growers align with those characteristics. (Peri-urban zones are the transition between urban and rural, refer https://ourlandandwater.nz/news/rethinking-the-whenua-around-our-cities-could-help-turn-the-table-on-our-food-crisis/ )
Small growers (in NZ) do not have a united voice from which they can be seen and heard by general consumers ("eaters") in the status quo food situation.
Further investigations include:
There is a gap between "affordable food" and "sustainable growers" in the context of consumers' voices for affordable food and financially sustainable small grower businesses. 

What volume of produce is actually grown by small growers, and (how) can such production systems be duplicated ( with diversity) not scaled up, to have meaningful impact in improving NZ food security and resilient communities?
Read the full report here 

Do you have a favourite seasonal recipe you'd be willing to share?
AhhHaaa - I'm a freedom cook ... so I seldom follow recipes!!
However, I have made a Hazelnut kumara caramel tart. It's amazing!! Recipe linked.

Footnote: Eat New Zealand is "a platform which encourages and enables collaboration between all parts of our food system encouraging regeneration. We do this by building stronger, more resilient food communities, ..."

https://www.eatnewzealand.nz/about-us

Member Spotlight - Waewae Permaculture

Fiona and Lian of Waewae Permaculture are our second member spotlight. They live and grow food in Osborne, just outside of Dunedin where they are cultivating a huge variety of vegetables, some fruit, herbs, and keep a wee herd of alpaca to manage what grass hasn’t been turned into garden beds.

You can find Waewae’s produce seasonally at the Otago Farmers Market, through their vege box scheme, and now at a roadside stall at the Holy Cow, just outside of Port Chalmers. Find out more about all they offer in their directory and CSA listings.

Besides answering some questions about themselves to help us all get to know them better, Lian and Fiona have recently hosted our market Southland Market Garden Training Programme participants during a field trip to Dunedin, and Lian led a zoom workshop for that as well. We really appreciate their willingness to share their time and expertise!

How did you get into growing?

We were both home and community gardeners with only basic growing skills but Fiona wanted to grow on a small commercial scale. Fiona started working for John McCafferty, a local organic grower who encouraged her to develop her own gardens. Lian got on board after 1 year as the challenge needed 2 people!

What's your current favorite plant/fruit/vegetable/flower etc to grow?

Broccoli! We tried a new variety with great success, Summer Green F1 from Kings seeds. We planted it in Feb, and it produced great heads but since then has regrown large side shoots over and over all winter long and is still going strong. Nigel from Oamaru organics also gave us some advice on large brassica, that they do like to spread large roots and some cultivation is required if the soil is not perfect, so we planted it where we previously had dug potatoes for some nice loose soil.

What do you like most about growing food for your community?

It helps us connect with the community in a rural area, as well as the wider community of growers and food lovers.

Do you have offerings besides vegetables that you want to share?

We run gardening workshops in spring, and also sell a few seeds we grow ourselves. We have 2 workshops for different skill levels this spring, you can take a look at https://openfoodnetwork.org.nz/waewae-permaculture/shop

Do you have a seasonal recipe you can share?

Pan Pak Choi from The Otago Farmers Market Recipe Catalogue

Recipe by Amy Dougherty

Method

Wash and cut length ways the pak choi and cut red onions into quarters with the end left on halves, so they keep together. Heat garlic oil in a large fry and cook red onion first, then batches of pak choi. Place on a board.  To toast the sunflower seeds, use the same pan (just wipe out with a paper towel) add the sunflower seeds and then the olive salt. Toss over the heat until they start to turn golden, then sprinkle the seeds over the pak choi. 

Serve on a wooden board as a side or as a main. Grate over the fresh radish to garnish.  

 Ingredients

2 heads of pak choi 

2-3 Tbsp garlic infused olive oil or use plain

2 small red onions 

2-3 radishes 

1/4 cup sunflower seeds 

1 tsp olive salt or use plain

Member Spotlight - Tomtit Farm

Our first member spotlight is Tomtit Farm. The Tomtits, Brit and James, are located in Matangi, Hamilton and they are growing a beautiful array of produce, flowers, and healthy, happy soil! You can find out more about their offerings and how to support their work in their directory listing. They are also part of the Earthworkers programme and have recently been featured on a Farmers in the Field Episode where they talk about no-till techniques and cover cropping. Watch that here!

Tomtit Farm offers their produce through a CSA as well as a 24/7 road side fridge at the Front Paddock Cafe and they even offer delivery! Their CSA offerings include seasonal veges as well as add ons such as fresh baked bread, local eggs, and Last Jar preserves which features Tomtit Farm’s vegetables. It is so great to see the way they are connecting with and supporting other local food business, this is what building local food systems is all about!

Thanks Tomtits for supporting our work here at Village Agrarians, we love what you are doing up north and can’t wait to see what you get up to this season! We are very excited to have you as part of our community!

The Tomtits answered some questions from us about themselves, and shared with us a warming winter recipe featuring cauliflower! Learn more about them below:

How did you get into growing?

Hmmm good question, well I am a massive foodie and love anything that has to do with cooking and eating so I guess growing food is a nice compliment to this passion of mine. The growing journey started from finishing my studies in human nutrition and falling down a rabbit hole of academia where I was hungry for more impact at the community level where the idea of growing organic food came about. I quit my job and started volunteering at community gardens and wwoofing around NZ when the opportunity arose to have a go ourselves in the Waikato a few years ago now.

What's your current favorite plant/fruit/vegetable/flower etc to grow?

There are too many to choose from... coming into spring it would be rude not to mention the happiness dahlias and zinnias bring to our garden. Though this winter I have really enjoyed growing radicchio, the patterns and brightness they bring to the winter garden is amazing.

What do you like most about growing food for your community?

How we can inspire and provide the tools for our community to learn about seasonal produce that grow well for us here in the Waikato, we provide access to a huge variety of produce and exhibit climate mitigation focused growing. The kindness and joy we receive from our customers makes my day and the turn out we get at our community gardening workshops always blows me away.

Do you have offerings besides vegetables that you want to share?

We are just about to start our Spring Seasonal Harvest CSA in September, this is more than vegetables, this is a community between us the farmers, our members who enjoy our produce and the land that we grow the food on. We love offering the chance for our customers to stick with us for a whole season because we really get to know each other really well over this time and can really demonstrate seasonal produce and how it's produced. Our Seasonal Harvest Members become part of the Tomtit Farmily.

We are also growing flowers again this season and are bringing back the Tomtit Farm PYO flowers days.

Do you have a seasonal recipe you can share?

Yes this is one of my absolute winter favourites and it's so easy to whip up.

Whole roasted cauliflower with sesame flat bread, recipe below.

(you can find more amazing recipes from Tomtit Farm on their website)

Welcome

It is quite likely, that if you are reading this, you probably have an interest in local food, organics, or sustainability. Good on you! What a good sort. Welcome to Village Agrarians, a group of other passionate folk who want to improve the world in a similar way. 😊

Why? Local, organics, and small scale have been increasing in priority since globalised consumption is driving the need for change, to be able to sustain our wonderful earth and the beautiful beings we share it with. It has been well established that the current global food system negatively impacts the environment, is wasteful, unequal, and vulnerable to unforeseen future changes. Since the outbreak of Covid-19, the support for local consumption and ‘building back better’ has only grown even more. Lockdown showed me how fast drastic change can happen if we really prioritise it, but it came at a difficult cost which is why it hasn’t been prioritised enough yet.

Reading a book by Melinda Williams, I recently came across the term ‘eco-despair’. I think a lot of people are feeling this at the moment. Perhaps particularly the young folk who aren’t yet able to vote, and are taking to the streets to voice their despair instead. When the problem feels so big, it can be overwhelming and hard to get a feeling of control over our own future and help where we want to most. I like Melinda’s way to combat this. Draw yourself two circles, one small, inside a larger. The small inner circle is your ‘circle of influence’. Fill this one with things you can influence directly. E.g. choosing to cycle, diet, growing some of your own food, choice of what you purchase, refilling rather than packaging. The larger is circle your ‘circle of concern’. It is for issues you are concerned about but are perhaps not able to directly influence as much as you would like. Examples might be protecting Maui dolphins on the West Coast. For issues in this circle, it might be best to address them by raising your voice by writing letters or submissions on proposed projects or government consultations. Categorising this way gave me a sense of empowerment and direction for where to put my energy and help handle my worries.

My Mum has always told me that making a difference is the most important thing we can do with our life. I love that my Mum taught me this, it has a huge influence on the choices I make. But ‘making a difference’ is pretty broad, and can feel unattainable as the goal posts keep shifting. But just by striving, and being passionate, we can influence and inspire others. Every little bit adds up. Growing food sustainably is perhaps the greatest thing we can do to help save the planet, and build food justice. Agriculture is responsible for about half of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, and food waste alone, if it were a country, would be the third largest emitter in the world, following only the USA and China.

As Village Agrarians, we are setting out to address this. By encouraging people to take up organic horticulture practices, and arming them with support to take their new skills a step further if they wish. Not only does this empower us to act on our own ‘circle of influence’, but also expands our circle by empowering others to act on their circle of influence too, through providing sustainably grown food.

Welcome to the club 😊 Let’s get started, I’m excited to meet you 😊 

Leigh – Beginner, Wanna-be, Village Agrarian.