General

Want to Start Your Own Organic Growing Business at Nabiac NSW?

004 gardens at honeycomb valley farm rosella patch

We are seeking expressions of interest from an individual/s interested in setting up their own organic, permaculture or biodynamic market garden business/s within Honeycomb Valley Farm, Nabiac, NSW.

We have land available (initially 3 acres to 15 acres of the 90 acre farm with potential for more – this is a separate area to where tourists currently enjoy established gardens) plus water from a 3 megalitre dam available for nominal lease for a person/people/group who would like to run their own professional organic market garden business/s from the farm. We also have some equipment available for agreed usage cost eg: small Kubota 26hp with detachable bucket & rotary hoe.

Some of the benefits of setting up your growing enterprise here include:

  • work in a great environment with all sorts of interesting people
  • you won’t need to buy or pay high rent for the land
  • the business you build will be yours to sell on (ie: we will maintain ownership of the land but not the business you build on it)
  • you can benefit from Honeycomb Valley Farm’s established business as we will be able to help you market, sell and distribute a proportion of your produce (through the already established farmgate shop & markets we attend)
  • we would also be a customer as a wholesale buyer, buying certain produce from you .
  • If you decided to run a CSA model as well, the farm is an easy pick-up point for customers and just 1 minute off the Pacific Highway
  • In the Great Lakes and Manning area (20 minutes drive) there are a number of restaurants and outlets you may be able to pursue to round out your business.
  • The farm is also 1.5hours from Newcastle where there is a wholesale produce market & one hour south of Port Macquarie where there is a high population interested in organic food
  • You may be able to explore running workshops from the farm teaching people growing skills, holding unique tours on special dates etc
  • We have great pollination here thanks to our honey and native Australian bees
  • You could potentially add chickens to your business providing you with fertility + income from eggs for sale
  • There are numerous other opportunities to think about and act on over time

Things to think about:

  • Do you want to be a small business owner or an employee?
  • Have you market garden experience
  • In addition to traditional market garden crops, we would be interested in someone/people willing to explore higher value herbs etc for sale. There might even be a possibility for a pick your own element to a section of the land.
  • Do you believe you can plan and fund the setting up of your market garden – and then maintain it profitably going forward? (we would be responsible for permanent infrastructure/permanent improvements, while you would be responsible for the inputs for each crop)
  • Market gardening is tough work, is it something you really want to do as a business?
  • Are you physically fit?
  • Do you understand the economics of growing and selling/distributing food, and have the funding to support your business through its first growing season when a lot of work needs to be done on soil preparation, money spent on implements and equipment? etc
  • Do you live locally or are you prepared to find a place to live nearby (we do not have spare accommodation on the farm currently)
  • Do you want to produce great, organic produce?
  • Do you love working in a beautiful environment with all sorts of interesting people to bounce off?

If so – we would love to hear from you via email or Facebook with a little about you and your vision! Please include your contact details so we can get in touch.

Please email [email protected] for this or for more information.

rainbow honeycomb valley farm nabiac

About Us:

Honeycomb Valley Farm is our family home (Andrew & Anna and kids and wwoofers from around the world) and a working farm, award-winning tourism destination, farmstay and producer of unique and delightful artisan goods sold at markets and through the farmgate shop. Our motto is “little farm, big picture”, we’re into sustainability, good food and great experiences.

The farm is located 3 hours north of Sydney, just minutes from the gorgeous rural village of Nabiac, NSW. It is 20 minutes to Forster. 1 hour to Port Macquarie. 1.5hrs to Newcastle.

We would love to hear from you during March/April 2015 if you think you might like to investigate this opportunity more. Please email or Facebook us in the first instance as we’re often out on the farm and not near a phone!

Bee well!

4 Comments

  1. I am interested in creating a global mindset of stewardship, responsibility and respect in harmony with nature. I thank you for every encouragement in sustainable living. In order to survive mankind needs to humble and partner with Nature’s innate wisdom. I would like to forest all the world’s ” wasteland ” and use the profit to promote educating people to enhance their lives by aligning with Nature. Thank you for the opportunity to express this

    1. Marshall you are wrighton. Avoid the drug of ownership.
      So many Ecovillages and Communities I have seen push for ownership of land. At 21y/o till 27 I owned 4000acs of land running 4000 sheep. What a drag on my soul it was. I never want to own any land again.

      However the model I have been developing over the last 15 years is that land is owned by a Coop or a Trust and the members pay rent to live on and work the land. This is called “LIVING VILLAGES AUSTRALIA” and will become a network of locations that we can move between. This is very suited to people who receive a Centerlink pension or benefit or have some marketable skill or other source of portable income. People trying to survive on Centerlink in the cities do it tough and feel disenfranchised as they have difficulty to get a loan. However by joining together the fact they have a regular income makes them very bankable. It is not the amount of money you get, but the amount you have to spend. By living together producing food or other goods for trade and preparing and eating together means the individual can live a better more fulfilling life. After all, it is not necessary for everyone to own a car. What about having a car pool. This also for many other items deemed necessary.

      To get around the hoops n hurdles the Councils put up could be avoided by having relocatable homes or Tiny Houses (on wheels) and using Caravan Park or Relocatable Home Park Legislation. I am presently in the process of obtaing a slightly neglected caravan park in the CBD of a village of 400 population 88km west of Brisbane. It can accommodate immediately 30 to 50 members and can be expanded. This is also suited to Grey Nomads who have tired of traveling. Single parents will enhance the community to make it Intergenerational.

  2. Why are people so scared that they always have to hang on to things? Have someone build a business on your land so that your land value goes up and they have no benefit from this? Why not help people on board by offering them good vendor terms terms? So that they can own it in the end? Can’t do because you can’t sub-divide? Then help them buy property in the area. Afraid they might sell it on to someone who might not work with the same principles? There must be covenants that you can put on sales that prevents that in the future.

  3. what a wonderful opportunity! Best wishes in your search for the right partners! Biodynamic farming is visionary!!

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