Four years ago our good friend Martin Duncan aka Sunshine Coast Foodie put to us the idea of hosting an industry event to showcase the incredible local produce this region has to offer. Not realizing quite how much work was involved we jumped on board. Every year this event has gotten bigger and bigger and every year we are stunned at the diversity, quality and quantity of food that is grown and produced in the Mary Valley, Gympie and wider Sunshine Coast regions.
This year Martin let us take the reins and we pared things back to create a more intimate gathering with a focus on really showcasing the customers of Kandanga Farm Stores’ own Bos Rural most of whom are organic and regenerative farmers. John from Wharenui Avocados (find him on Insta) brought perfectly ripe, salt and peppered avos (oh yeah!). Courtney and Keiran our Red Earth Farmers from Amamoor (follow them on FB) brought devine salads bursting with certified organic salad greens. Dave from Lust for Crust (FB) had his handmade totally moreish sourdoughs which also featured in the Garlic Bread by Jade & Hayden from Summerville Farms (FB and Insta – worth following for their beautiful images). Victoria from Winsland Park Harvest brought a fermented salsa, labneh and guacomale which she served with homemade GST seed crackers. Stuart & Megan from Forage Farms brought Foragers pie with their pastured pork and poultry – it went so quick I didn’t even get to try it. Nic The Farming Dietician (you ‘ll find him on FB) brought a Roasted Veg Salad. Tanja of Tanjules Feast brought a beautiful wasabi salad using produce grown in the Kandanga Farm Market Garden. Kandanga Farm brought a certified organic K2Beef Bourginon which also included Forage Farm Bacon, Red Earth Farmers Carrots, and home grown herbs. Kandanga Kitchen’s Bec teamed up with Jesse from Little Bunya Organics to make a stunning curry featuring Jesses’ ginger and galangal and we also got to try the ginger grown by Luke from Diamondfield Produce with his gingered drumsticks. Entertaining Michael of Mighty Bean Tempeh converted a few non believers to the magic of tempeh and pared freshly roasted tempeh with paperbark smoked chilli sauce from the fabulous Peter Wolfe of Cedar Creek Farm Bushfoods (FB!), Peter also did some converting with his delicious spicy kangaroo parcels. Bruno & Trish brought an Orange and Fennel Salad which was a traditional family recipe from Italian Bruno. He also slipped me a sample of his Lemoncello liquer which certainly allayed any nerves I had getting about getting on the microphone. Creating the vibe on the day were local musicians Junction Road Music playing a locally made Venz guitar made from local timber. Bargara is near Bundaberg but we’ll embrace them too and we certainly embraced the beer and cider that came from Bargara Brewing Co.
Did I mention dessert? The chocolate, mandarin bliss balls from Blackgate Orchards (they’re on Instagram) were indeed blissful and the Zesty Lime Syrup cake from Amy of Gilldora Grove (Insta and FB) was out of this world yum! Michelle from Ugly Duck Preserves always has winners and her crostata tarts did not fail to dazzle. Red Earth Farmers brought a deliciously healthy raw carrot slice. A lemon Myrtle cake from Zelda of Purity Essential Oils was also a hit. Zelda also generously donated some of her skincare range as a lucky door prize as did the energetic Nina from Banyan View Farm who is venturing beyond the plate to naturally inspired remedies, tinctures and potions – follow her on Insta and FB for more.
It wasn’t just producers and artisans at this year’s Pot Luck Luncheon but also our wonderful local B & B’s who tell the stories of our region to their guests, suggest places for them to visit (hello Kandanga Farm Store!) and pamper them with home made meals bursting with local, fresh goodness. Thanks you guys we love you – Mary Valley Views, Melawondi Spring Retreat, Amamoor Lodge. Also doing amazing things to build the profile of local ethical food producers were the Slow Food Noosa contingent plus Emma from the Food and Agribusiness Network (FAN) . Both organisations are worth joining.
And we had local chef Michael from Capelli Foods who is our go to Chef on Demand! Plus James from Charlies Hotel at Gympie who has been having fun recently with popup degustation evenings showcasing yet more fabulous produce such as the pastured pork from the Mason brothers at Piggy In The Middle
We had Lindy & Leon from Kelly & CO to help our local farmers looking for finance along with Cynthia representing QRIDA which is a QLD Government lending service specifically for primary producers. Local Councillors from both Gympie and Sunshine Coast were suitably impressed and we are confident they went away committed to securing the future of farming in our region.
Ross from Terra Firma Fertilisers and Jason from Organic Crop Protectants – two of our favourite suppliers were on hand to talk soil, plant health and agronomy. Terra Firma also very generously donated a walk behind fertilizer spreader that was won by Tanja on behalf of the Kandanga State School who have taken on the care of the Kandanga Farm Market Garden.
Some of our favorite food retailers came including Kay from the little but bursting with everything you need Pomona’s Little Pantry (on FB as Pomona Fruit) and Ashleigh from Tewantin Market Garden (lovely Insta feed worth following). You don’t have to drive all the way to the Mary Valley to get yourself loaded up with local produce (but please come see us too!)
Finally the day was captured by the talented and wonderful Petra from Sunshine Coast Regional Food Directory – your new go to place for finding what to buy and where. These are her images.
Big thankyou to Bec of Kandanga Kitchen who threw open the kitchen doors to allow our producers to work their produce magic. The Pot Luck is only once a year but you can eat local amazing produce every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Kandanga Kitchen.
