Growers

South Australia's fertile Currency Creek region is home Graeme Pitchford - the state's only producer of gourmet brassica, Broccolini® baby broccoli.

Every single stalk has to be picked by hand on the right day.    

South Australia's fertile Currency Creek region is home to the state's only producer of gourmet brassica, Broccolini® baby broccoli.

It's here, in the lush growing fields south of Adelaide, where Graeme Pitchford, wife Mandy and parents John and Bev of Pitchford Produce have been part of the Broccolini® baby broccoli story since it was introduced to Australia in 1999.

After a decade of growing this delicate crop, the Pitchfords established their own seedling nursery in an effort to reduce costs and their carbon footprint and to ensure a consistent quality. The nursery was a leap into uncharted territory for the family which cultivates up to 500,000 seedlings at a time.

"We used to buy our seedlings from a nursery in Victoria but were keen to become more self-sufficient," Graeme says.

The Pitchfords, who grow labour-intensive Broccolini® baby broccoli year `round, send approximately 3,000 boxes to market most weeks of the year. During winter, they also grow root vegetable, celeriac, for Perfection Fresh.

"Harvesting Broccolini® is the most critical time in the life of the crop. Every single stalk has to be picked by hand on exactly the right day. If we miss that window, the plant could go to flower or the length of the stalk might vary ... we can't ever take our eye off the crop."

While Graeme finds a part of him is always on the farm (an automatic watering system even sends him a text message if it encounters a problem), the rewards are numerous.

"We've seen our hard work and research help what was a new product in Australia become a national success story and we're proud to be part of that."

Serving Suggestion

Broccolini® baby broccoli goes with everything. Leave the stem long, lightly steam for a few minutes and sprinkle with black pepper.