Five Sixty Farms is a family-owned organic microgreen farm located south of Lismore. The certified business is dedicated to producing the freshest and highest quality microgreens using sustainable farming practices. For those who don’t know, microgreens are young plants that are harvested when they are only a few inches tall, just after they have developed their first true leaves.
Forward thinking and community involvement are often key themes of organic businesses in Australia, and AOL Member Charles Higgins is a great example of these concepts. Charles is part of an expanding local co-operative in the Nambucca Valley region on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, where he and four other growers produce certified organic macadamias for the Australian market.
Down Under Enterprises is a vertically integrated grower, producer and global wholesale supplier of pure Australian Essential Oils and native botanical ingredients. Products are sourced from their New South Wales farm Buhlambar, which lives in the heart of the traditional home of the Aboriginal Bundjalung people (in Bundjalung language, Buhlambar means ‘Home of Tea Tree’). Other small growers also contribute to the Down Under business.
BioAg is an Australian owned and operated manufacturer since 1999, offering proven certified organic liquid biostimulants and natural phosphate fertilisers.
The company was formed to provide sound biological programs for agriculture-based soil and plants, at a time when suitable solutions and products were not readily available through conventional supply chains. BioAg’s development has been driven by conversations with farmers who wanted to do things differently and better but needed access to the right inputs to achieve those goals.
You can find Organigrow’s free range egg farm on 70 acres of land at Monaltrie in Northern New South Wales. The farm been certified organic since 1999, operated by two generations of the Cripps Clark family.
Current owner and manager Simon Cripps Clark is committed to offering an idyllic free-range environment for Organigrow’s chickens. Although up to 1,500 hens per hectare are permitted according to organic standards, the density at Organigrow does not exceed 600 birds per hectare.
Buderim-based Guano Australia has been a long-term supporter of the Australian organic industry, offering certified allowed inputs to growers across the nation.
Guano Australia has been selling premium Guano Gold fertiliser products for more than 30 years, with the business established in Victoria in 1992 before relocating to the Sunshine Coast in 2005.
Their locally produced Guano Liquid Gold and Guano Liquid Gold with KMS Fertiliser range has seen very positive growth recently, given disrupted international supply chains and rising costs of commercial fertilisers. As such, the business can offer a price advantage to Australian farmers when compared to many imported products.
Planet Organic on the Sunshine Coast offer an extensive range of certified organic teas, coffees, herbs and spices that are full on flavour but light on the earth. The Coolum-based business has grown significantly since it was founded in 1997, with 59 different certified organic teas now available to health-conscious consumers.
The entire Planet Organic range is certified organic, with raw materials ethically sourced from overseas and packaged at their Sunshine Coast facility. Popular tea items include lines like spearmint, chamomile, ginger and rosehip hibiscus, with plenty of other exotic options to choose from.
Queensland’s Biosota Organics has been proudly producing the strongest possible grades of medicinal Manuka honey in the world since 1999. Manuka honey is the rarest type in the world, accounting for just 1% of the globe’s total available honey as the Manuka tree is only native to Australia and New Zealand.
Medicinal Manuka honey presents higher levels of MGO (Methyglyoxal) when compared to regular honey and table-grade Manuka honey, and is naturally bioactive with antibacterial, antimicrobial, antiseptic, and anti-inflammatory properties for the healing and prevention of various ailments.
Husband and wife team Clayton and Jackie settled at Tulloch Brae, just north of Toowoomba, 18 years ago. The Sargoods were one of the first certified organic beef producers in Queensland. The family has continued to expand and diversify its business since then, with multiple breeder properties in western Queensland continually supplying the 1200 acre finishing farm, Tulloch Brae.
To ensure a consistent product, Clayton’s Organic beef is grain assisted. What does this mean in the world of pasture-fed organic beef? Animals are allowed to free range their whole lives and have continuous access to pasture, and no hormones, antibiotics or synthetic pesticides are used within their production.