Forging a foraging community

But ironically, sprouting up like weeds in a wet season, is a community of people within this food bowl who share a concern around food security — the availability, price and quality of it.

And they’re part of a global trend of food-eaters (people) who want to shorten the food supply chain for economic, environmental and health reasons.

Behind this emerging group are niche egg farmers Mick and Nikki Wane from Tri-Hard Farm and produce purveyor Hannah Gray from Bowerbird Gift Co, both based in the southern Riverina.

“The idea came about over coffee amongst a group of friends. We wanted to find better ways to reduce food wastage and beat the rising cost of living,” Mr Wane said.

“It didn’t take us long to work out that most of us were producers of one thing or another, had a range of skills, experiences and resources.

“So it made sense to look at ways to share these things rather than continue to simply go out and purchase them.

“If we are in a more connected community, we might discover that we have a neighbour that might be more than happy to share or barter this product, resource or skill.”

On December 10, about 40 people brought their thoughts and chairs to the inaugural meeting at ‘The Shed’ on the Wanes’ property.

Discussions were around the rising cost of living, food shortages seen locally and globally and the link between nutrient dense food and health.

“This first event was very encouraging. It put our idea into action and was a way of gauging a wider level of interest on issues of concern to us,” Mr Wane said.

“There was much enthusiasm about visiting and learning from each other’s operations. Food security was by far the most important thing to those who attended.

“This tied in nicely because our guest speaker elaborated on the impact soil health had on the quality of our food.”

The group, which gathered from throughout the southern Riverina, heard from soil coach Luke Harrington from Re-Gen Farming who discussed practices to improve soil quality and challenged the audience to be more proactive about growing their own food.

Mr Wane, a self-confessed ‘new farmer’, has migrated from the rat race where he and his wife believed they were guilty of paying for convenience when it came to sourcing food instead of thinking about the role they could play in feeding themselves.

“There’s a resurgence in growing your own food. People are finding out who’s growing what locally and tapping into that,” he said.

“Food prices are rising and food shortages have become common, causing people to wake up and think about how they source their food.”

The Shed, just 6km east of Finley, will host the group’s second meeting on Saturday, February 4 at 8am. Anyone interested in being part of the conversation is welcome to attend.

To register your interest or for further information, email Mick Wane at: thfarm223@gmail.com