Here’s three of our hottest local producers selling directly to chefs and restaurateurs this week!

(Don’t be fooled by the number 3, there are many more where they came from! Register as a buyer at foodorbit.com to see more)

Field to Feast

Farm fresh, organic (not certified) veg! Situated in Catherine Field, only one hour south west of Sydney, Field to Feast Farm is 8 acres of vegetable goodness.
Over 40 items listed in the marketplace!
Check out Field to Feast’s profile here

Farmer George Lamb

Farmer George is a family owned and operated boutique meat company that supplies premium quality free range lamb from our family farm “Meroo Hills” just outside of Mudgee, NSW.
See Farmer George’s profile here

Randall Organic Rice

Produce fresh tasty rice that is organic, chemical free and locally grown.  The rice is milled and delivered in less than 2 weeks and as a result more nutritious 
Check out Randall Organic Rice here

Remember, there are a lot more local farmers and producers where they came from! Stay tuned for next weeks hottest

FOx

We were honoured to be a part of the Locavored Edition Series event at Fed Square for Fair Food Week, it’s not every day you get the opportunity to be in a room full of such inspiring people!

We talked food waste, farming and food and what we can all do to make a difference. As Costa put it, the night was all about looking at ways we could “focus our ideas to make a change”.

We talked about our real heroes, the farmers, and what we can do to encourage the average consumer (who thinks the only way to buy corn is wrapped in plastic on a black polystyrene tray) to better support their local farmers. So at the end or the night the message was to “pass it on”, pass on the knowledge and understanding of everyone in the room to friends family and loved ones, and encourage them to pass it on too.

All in all, the night was an empowering collaboration of inspiring people and I’m sure we weren’t the only ones who left feeling like we could change the world!

Until next time fellow fair foodies!

FO

Food Orbit is Australia’s first online platform enabling local farmers and producers to connect and trade directly with chefs and restaurateurs.  By shortening the supply chain Food Orbit is providing fairer prices for farmers and greater transparency of produce quality for chefs.

Local Sydney farmers Norm & Robyn from Highland Gourmet Potatoes are reaping the benefits of selling directly to award winning Chef, Tom Walton of The Bucket List Bondi, using the new online service Food Orbit.

For Norm and Robyn it’s always a juggling act between tending to their the farm, trading at their stores at Eveleigh and Pyrmont Farmers Markets on the weekends, and checking in on their honesty stall close to their farm in the Southern Highlands. Their story, which many other Australian farmers can relate to, has made growing their business quite challenging. Being able to connect and trade with wholesale customers directly through Food Orbit has helped them grow their business and created more opportunities to work with top chefs in their area.

Highland Gourmet Potatoes have 37 different varieties of potatoes, which Walton features in a number of his dishes. There’s the delicious potato gnocchi served with braised beef short rib, and the Sunday Roast using the baby ‘mixed roast’ varieties with whole split heads of garlic, thyme and olive oil. 

“Dealing directly with the chefs without the usual hassle of invoicing and payments is great. It means we can receive more large orders of 20kg, 40kg or 60kg of potatoes per order which is much better for our business” Norm, Highland Gourmet Potatoes

For Chef Walton, he’s always had a strong passion for knowing and supporting farmers and using quality produce he can source locally. He has been running a series of Local Produce Dinners where he showcases Highland Gourmet’s Potatoes and a number of other local farmers and producers.

“I’ve already been trying to source local produce at the Bucket List Bondi however this has made it a lot easier - having one centralized platform where I can search by product and location has saved me a lot of time” Tom Walton, Head Chef at The Bucket List Bondi

Food Orbit www.foodorbit.com is getting ready to launch its trading platform in Sydney in the coming weeks. They already have local farmers and producers such as Pepe Saya, Field to Feast, and Melanda Park on board, and some of Sydney’s top chefs like Tom Walton from The Bucket List Bondi, Shannon, Darren and Mark from The Three Blue Ducks, and James Viles from Biota Dining.

Food Orbit’s online marketplace is available 24 hours a day for buyers and sellers to join and start trading with each other

Farmer George lets us in on his story as fun loving farmer, plus his take on food sustainability in Sydney restaurants. 

How and when did Farmer George begin?

I was sending lamb and beef down to Sydney for family and mates starting about 2010, but just over a year ago, we got the logo drawn up, after all my mates started calling me Farmer George! It sounded a lot better than the other nicknames I have had in the past!

Tell us about your farming/production techniques that make your produce so unique? 

We have been planned grazing since 2003 and since then we have been learning more and more how the life cycles of the animals work, and how everything relies on everything else. We now farm good soils and our by-products are good livestock.  We feel that we farm sustainably and we include profit in this, so that we can afford to farm and live, and do the right thing by the planet and its inhabitants. Our operation is run on Holistic Management guide lines, using native grasses where possible, and very little supplementary feeding.

What’s your take on food sustainability and the use of local produce in Sydney/NSW restaurants? 

Presently I think it is growing in a healthy way. I have been to one popular restaurant in Sydney where they brought the whole body of beef and cut it up to cook, which to me means they are not only using the primal cuts, but inventing ways to use the less known cuts to their customers. I get a lot of new customers saying “what do I do with this cut?” or “can I just have the racks and loins please”. We assure them that all cuts are great, and it doesn’t take long before they know how to use all the cuts and enjoy the whole body and even enjoy some lesser known cuts more.

If you weren’t doing what you’re currently doing, what would you be? 

Probably travelling around Australia and seeing this great country and staying at homesteads and B&B’s, and enjoying country hospitality!

What are you famous for amongst your friends?

I am Farmer George, that’s quirky enough!

How can we find you?

You can find me and my lamb on my website 

www.farmergeorge.com.au, www.facebook.com/FGMudgee and twitter.com/FGMudgee @FGMudgee

Farmer George is also one of the local producers set up to trade directly with chefs and restaurateurs online at foodorbit.com

Farmer George shares his favourite Honey & Rosemary Glazed Lamb Rack recipe with us