A Great Southern orchard does not plan on ripping out trees despite being one of the last commercial operations in the state; Annecke Theron runs what is believed to be the only commercial apricot orchard in the Great Southern region. She has run the Mount Barker farm since 2015. Ms Theron immigrated to Australia from South Africa and was told by locals that the Great Southern used to host many more orchards.
WA Stone Fruits chair Danny DiMarco said the decline in apricot orchards had been noticeable: "I've seen a few growers pulling quite a few out over the past 15 years," he said. "There probably have been a few plantings, but nothing to really replace what we probably grew 10, 15 years ago."
"It's a high-risk crop, you know, weather can affect it, and of course, your production costs are very high," DiMarco said. "If it doesn't go right for you, you can find yourself losing money instead of making money." He said he did not see much of a future for the crop in WA.
Ms Theron has found a way to share her love of the stone fruit with sceptical consumers through value-adding products for her brand Gloria Dieu Orchards. "It's just adapting to change and seeing where you can cut costs and where you can use more of the resources that you have and go forward," she said. The value-adding products included jams, dried fruit, and later this year a trial of an apricot port.
Source: abc.net.au