From sourcing 10,000 tonnes of potatoes from growers for a multinational snack food giant to his own humble production on his Browns Creek Road property, potato farmer Doug Dagg knows his way around the world's most popular vegetable.
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When the COVID lockdowns and subsequent restrictions came into force Farmer Doug had to pivot towards something that was less risky, and didn't require travelling to markets that admit they didn't really want people over 70 running stalls.
The solution was to sell his gourmet spuds from the farm gate and to restaurants, and it's been keeping the 86 year old very busy.
"People are eating our potatoes at Charred and the Union Bank in Orange and driving out here to take some home," he said. "They're getting a product that is fresh and unique and will cook as it's meant to cook."
With such rich agricultural land within the Blayney shire available for small scale operations, such as Farmer Doug's 80 acres, Blayney Shire Council have introduced new rules that will allow all producers to develop their lots into agritourism, farm gate premises or farm stay accommodation, with consent.
Blayney's Deputy mayor David Somervaille said that there are conditions that need to be met, such as the land being zoned either RU1 primary production or RU2 rural landscape, before consent will be given, and sees the potential for a growth in agritourism ventures throughout the shire.
"This has been introduced because the NSW Government wants to streamline the approval of agritourism development and small-scale agricultural developments to encourage regional tourism," he said.
"Agritourism allows farm experience activities like horse riding and farm tours. A farm gate premise is the produce equivalent of a cellar door where you can sell produce from your farm."
It's in the category of Farm Stay Accommodation however that Blayney Shire Council won't be accepting the State government's recommendation of allowing up to 36 bedrooms on rural zoned sites.
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"That would result in quite a large business on a farm," Cr Somervaille said, "They also don't need to be on a working farm either as long as the land is zoned primary production."
With a large number of farms scattered around the shire that aren't being used for primary production, the potential of them becoming essentially mining villages disguised as farm stay is not one that council wants to consider.
"We're sticking to our existing definition of farm stay accommodation and allow it where it's on a working farm and limited to 12 people," Cr Somervaille said.
Farmer Doug approves of the changes to farm gate sales which legitimises what's he's been doing.
"There is a big opportunity for people to begin to develop their property into something which will bring fresh food for locals and tourists," he said.
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Mark Logan
Started working in newspapers in the 1990's in the darkroom of the Pastoral Times in Deniliquin before moving to Millthorpe in 2003. Soon after arriving I started as a photographer at the CWD. Now a journalist at the Blayney Chronicle.
Started working in newspapers in the 1990's in the darkroom of the Pastoral Times in Deniliquin before moving to Millthorpe in 2003. Soon after arriving I started as a photographer at the CWD. Now a journalist at the Blayney Chronicle.
