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THE STORY OF THE FRUIT THE CONCEPT Kabi Golf Club and Orchard was established to create a synergy on one property between recreation, conservation, and sustainable food production. The golf course was designed with areas set aside for preservation and regeneration of the local habitat as well as the orchard areas that boast 1150 fruit trees planted on mounds. THE ORCHARD The orchard is certified organic with the Biological Farmers Association and also has Freshcare Certification. This allows us to sell our fruit through the major wholesalers and directly to the supermarkets. The varieties grown are: Oranges, Mandarins, Lemons, Limes, Grapefruit, Tangelos, Pomelos, Lemonades, Kaffirs, Custard apples, Nashi pears, Longans, Olives, and Starfruit. The fruit trees are growing on well maintained mounds that do not compromise the playability of the course THE PRODUCTION The fruit is grown using a variety of organic fertilisers and natural deterrents to deal with fungal and pest problems. Fertilisers used in production include composts, ground rock minerals, lime and seaweed extracts. Potassium bi-carbonate and a natural form of copper are employed to control fungal diseases when they occur. To control pests we use a system known as Integrated Pest Management (IPM). This is a monitoring system that concentrates on promoting beneficial/predator insects in the orchard to control insect pests that can cause commercial damage to the crop. Most pests in the orchard are controlled using Botanical oils (Canola/Eco-oil or Parafin) as these control many of the scale and mite problems yet are harmless to their natural predators. The most significant pest problem for citrus that cannot be controlled by IPM or botanical oils is Queensland Fruit Fly. This is controlled using a harmless molasses based bait spray called Naturelure. The protein in the molasses attracts the female fruit fly as she needs a protein source prior to laying her eggs in ripening fruit. The active ingredient in Naturelure is Spinosad. This is harmless to humans and has no impact on our beneficial insect populations. Implementation of these methods in the last two seasons has resulted in a marked increase in production of over 30%. Last season the Kabi Orchard produced approximately 12 000 kg’s of A grade fruit for market as well as a considerable quantity of 2nd quality fruit that was donated to charity. Despite this success some of the lower quality fruit found its way to the ground only to be mown back into the soil. THE MARKET Kabi Orchard sells the bulk of its fruit to the main two organic fruit wholesalers at Rocklea Markets in Brisbane (Eco Farms and United Organics). In recent times there has been a concerted effort to distribute more of our fruit locally to reduce food miles. Many fruit shops, restaurants, juice bars, home delivery enterprises and others have previously sourced our product from Brisbane. We now sell to them directly which avoids agents fees and the rapidly rising cost of freight. Another advantage to selling locally is the reduction of the time our fruit spends in cold storage which means local consumers are getting a fresher product at a better price. During the picking season we also retail the fruit directly to the public from the golf course and sell freshly squeezed juices from our restaurant. Sunshine Coast businesses that buy our fruit include- Natural Food Store at Forest Glen Organika at Noosa Premium Fresh at Noosa Supernatural Organics at Cootharaba Mrs Flanneries at Maroochydore Greenacre Organics at Eumundi Harmony Organics at Gympie My Budget Organics at Cooloola Seasons Restaurant at Noosa Riverhouse Restaurant THE SEASON Although lemons and limes are available in varying quantities all year round the main citrus season is between April and September. Customers generally order by email with a week notice which allows us to pick wash and package the fruit within 24 hours of supply. With prior arrangement we can deliver fruit orders in the local area. Boxes of fruit sold are marked with the date picked and which orchard block they were picked from. Varieties are sold in: 5kg boxes for Limes 6-7kg boxes for Mandarins, Tangelos, Pomelos, Lemonade’s 12 kg boxes for Ruby and Thompson Grapefruit 15 kg boxes for Navel and Valencia Oranges and Lemons Prices are variable depending on quantities ordered and the wholesale market price at the time. FARM TOURS We offer tours of the orchard, golf course and surrounding rainforest areas. In the past year we have given free tours to Tewantin Primary School students, a bushwalking group from the University of the Third Age, a group of customers and the owners of My Budget Organics, and bird and botany groups from the Noosa Parks Association. Tours are conducted by orchard manager Aaron White. CONTACT To discuss fruit availability or a tour of the property please contact Aaron White at aaron@kabigolf.com.au or PH 54 853 494 Ext 3
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