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In Focus:
Forest Hill Farm. TAS
Forest Hill Farm, owned and managed by the Benson family - Ian and Gloria, and sons - is an established farm enterprise in Tasmania which grows, packs and distributes a range of vegetable produce across Australia, and to export destinations in Europe and South East Asia.
Whilst initially unsure of the market potential for organic produce, the family converted their farm practices to organic based on a belief that conventional techniques were unsustainable and damaging to the health of both crop and livestock, and ultimately detrimental to human health.
The process of converting the farm to organic management was not without its challenges. From the outset, the family needed to find a bank prepared to ride with them through the conversion phase.
"We had to find a bank which would be happy to allow us to drop our existing contracts with processors, to grow crops we didn't know how to grow organically, then to sell to markets we didn't know existed," says son, Mark Benson.
"On top of this, we required a huge workforce to control weeds, which inevitably grew healthier than the crop. Five years down the track, weeds and labour are still our two major issues" he says.
In embracing biological principles, the family has found the climate and growing conditions in Tasmania particularly supportive of this management ethic, with the change to organic - according to Mark - "ultimately giving us greater control over out lives".
With the farm operation proving to be a successful enterprise, the family will continue to focus on servicing existing markets, and with a view to gradually increasing the number of lines in the future, to ensure an adequate and consistent supply.
Back to Primary Production.
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