They’re a bunch of trendsetters up in Northland. In 1998 the decision by a group of small growers to sell direct to the public in a Whangarei carpark, helped kickstart the farmers’ market movement in New Zealand.
They do a brisk trade from the Water Street carpark; the market turns over around $3.6 million per year, while saving small growers from being buried by the purchasing power of the big supermarket chains.
You do need to get in early for the good stuff, and that suits the growers just fine. Grower and market co-founder Murray Burns sums it up: “We’re all farmers; we need to get back to our farms.”
With between 40-75 stalls depending on the time of year, seasonal fruit and vegetables dominate with a good smattering of eggs, small goods, gourmet meats and fresh seafood. The philosophy
is simple, the produce must be local, and to sell it at the market you must be a grower or producer.
There are a few anomalies, like the J&J’s Cakes on Wheels selling gluten-free bread and German-style cakes, and the French crêpe stall that had a huge line when Taste visited. “We’re not kicking them out, but we’re not adding to them,” Murray explains. His preference is for people to buy their spray-free, or organic produce and head home to make healthy food for their families – but everyone needs a treat now and then…
There’s also coffee, supplied by Steve Loane who has been going to the market since around 2002 – he reckons his was the first mobile coffee van in New Zealand – clearly another trendsetter.
The period from March to May is one of abundance in Northland and that is reflected at the market. The warmer weather up north means summer produce is available for longer and Murray says you can still buy watermelon in April and capsicums stick around later than elsewhere in the country. There’s always a steady supply of staple vegetables like leek, cauliflower, cabbage and lettuce too.
There are no rules to limit the number of stalls selling the same produce and Murray says that benefits the public and the growers: “Why limit choice? Growers become better with a bit of competition.”
Growers can also turn their hand at value-added products like chutneys, sauces and pestos using the surplus from their growing operations.
Murray and his wife Nicci sell spray-free organic, hydroponic herbs and vegetables from their HydroHealthy stall. They also make products like basil, coriander, rocket and parsley pesto with
local macadamia nuts, and bottles of wheatgrass juice – a drink so nutrient-dense you’d be an idiot not to try it.
Many of the stalls at the market don’t have names, they’re just local growers coming to sell their produce. But a few of the bigger stalls like Somerset Growers were laden with apples and plenty of plums like Black Doris, Red Doris and Fortune. For the likes of Lord Nelson and Sunrise apples and Sultan plums there’s Huanui Orchards and the huge Poroti Growers stall has all manner of vegetables as well as fruit and melons, including a range of watermelon, separated by size from large to gigantic.
The Hukerenui Gardens stall, home of the ‘World Famous in Hukerenui’ plum and ginger sauce, also make a hot lemon pickle which would make a perfect condiment on a curry, as well as a popular kasundi which we bought to spice up a roast chicken that evening.
Operacado from Glenbervie, sell organic Hass and Fuerte avocados as well as limes, grapes, passionfruit and strawberries. Co-owners Joan and Rick Kennway are organisers of the popular yearly Opera in the Garden on their 10-acre orchard.
Meat options include Waima Hill Beef organic beef, gluten-free sausages and cooked beef salami, all vac-packed and Demeter-certified organic. Windies Salami and the Long Flat Bacon Company have small goods, like salami, chorizo and black pudding along with Manuka-smoked bacon and a variety of hams. There were queues for lamb chops and lamb short ribs at the new Oxville Farms stall, which bodes well for the future.
Wet fish like snapper, kahawai, gurnard and mullet are available from Northern Live Fisheries. Murray says kina are also a popular item at the market — a delicacy for some, an acquired taste for others. There is also smoked fish available from Toni’s Seafoods stall, and Murray says Alison Bradley and Alan Tindall sell Pacific oysters fresh from their farm near Orongo Bay, but they’ve finished for the season – consider it something to look forward to.
Oyster mushrooms, on the other hand, were present and accounted for in the form of Mighty Mushrooms who have them fresh, dried, smoked and powdered.
For award-winning Dutch-style cheeses (gouda and edam) there’s Mahoe Cheese from the Bay of Islands who make their cheese from their own small herd of Friesian-Cross cows.
From a bit further south (geographically on both counts) comes award-winning French-style cheese from Grinning Gecko Cheese of Whangarei. Their camembert won silver at the Champion of Cheese Awards 2014 and they also make a brie, ricotta, feta, Hātea (based on the Red Leicester) and Parihaka (based on romano style cheese).
There’s free-range eggs aplenty from the likes of the Gardeners Delight, Ohaewai Chicken or Chicken Capers stalls so you won’t want for eggs. In fact, if you’re after fresh, healthy value-for-money produce, you won’t want for anything at the Whangarei Growers’ Market.
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