My Market Kitchen heroes our growers

A new Channel Ten program is helping to educate Australian viewers on the marvels of Aussie horticulture and its value to the health and prosperity of our country. Hort Innovation, the research and development corporation for the horticulture industry, is sponsoring Ten’s My Market Kitchen to showcase grower stories, their produce and the research-driven innovations and practices that growers use on-farm to deliver nutritious and sometimes unique fruit, vegetables and nuts to plates and lunchboxes across Australia.

My Market Kitchen will feature growers in 12 segments of the show, visiting growers on their farms and hearing stories of our farmers’ passion for growing the food we eat every day. Each grower’s produce is then transformed into easy and delicious meals with recipes you can follow. Key nutrition benefits are also highlighted.

“We want to build and re-enforce the connection between Australian consumers and their growers,” says Hort Innovation CEO Matt Brand. “It’s about connecting people with growers and the fresh produce that ends up on their plate.

“We hope the end result is that people want to eat more fruit, vegetables and nuts.”

Custard apple grower and President of Custard Apples Australia Daniel Jackson is featured in the first episode, which aired on June 26. He and his wife grow custard apples and macadamia nuts in Queensland’s Glasshouse Mountains, and have been working with the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries on a Hort Innovation-funded trial to develop and evaluate new high-yielding green and red skin custard apple varieties.

“We’re trying to identify varieties that grow better than others,” he says. “We’re looking at different coloured or shaped and seedless fruit, and nutrition and water. We’re sharing the information with growers, trying to identify what growers are doing differently.

“I’m excited to share our history and vision for custard apples with Australia, as well as hear from other growers and all they do to produce the highest quality fruit, vegies and nuts.”

For more on My Market Kitchen, head to the website. For more information, grower videos, research and development projects and recipes, head to horticulture.com.au