Submitted: 18 March 2003

Fresh Produce Priced Up By The Middlemen.

There was an excellent piece in a recent Sydney Morning Herald article about how farming families are "being crunched by middlemen".

The Farmer interviewed (an apple grower) is quoted as saying - "You talk about dollars per kilo in supermarkets and when you talk about growing it's cents a kilo". In other words, it is everyone in between that is making the money. And those in between are the packers, the marketers, distributors, wholesalers, agents, long distance truckers, insurers and retailers - all of whom need to be paid. These costs probably do not include environmental degredation.

Also, in between are distances of more than 1000 kilometres and sometimes several weeks between picking and display at a Port Macquarie retailer shelf.

The moral of this story is to support the Hastings Farmers' market. Anyone who shops at the market, held on the fourth Saturday morning of every month, knows that the taste of locally grown fruit and vegetable is always better. And if you keep buying your fruit and vegetables direct from the farmer, they will earn enough to keep farming and, hopefully encourage the next generation to also be farmers.

Specials last market included: packets of mixed herbs, honey, stevia ( a superb natural sweetener), seedless grapes, butter beans and lebanese cucumbers. And Ricardoes tomatoes are now back having completed construction of their very impressive hydroponic growing facility at Blackman's Point.

The Hastings Farmers' market is a fantastic social and cultural experience where you can enjoy cooking demonstrations at 9.30am and 10.30am. This month, Chef, Rosalie Coffey will be preparing a tantalising selection including Hastings Farmed Fish and a spicy asian pesto meal.

"...distances of more than 1000 kilometres and sometimes several weeks between picking and display at...retailer shelf."