Adelaide Hills Berry Farm has been forced to let go of their workers due to fruit fly quarantine

An Adelaide Hills berry farm will look to the next season as they cut their losses, including all casual workers and $750,000 in income, because of ‘devastating’ fruit fly quarantine rules.

A popular South Australian berry farm has lost $750,000 and has been forced to lay off staff after they say were “unfairly” caught within the fruit fly quarantine zone.

Adelaide Hills Berry Farm in Uraidla has been forced to let go 12 to 15 casual workers as the losses have been too high since the Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) notified them in January to stop selling their produce immediately.

The farm has been caught within the radius of the Yellow Suspension Zone of the Queensland Fruit Fly, and as a result, will lose $250,000 worth of produce despite no fruit fly being detected on their farm.

Farm manager Dominic Virgara, 64, said the farm “doesn’t have the outlet for the produce anymore” after having already gone six months without income as it prepares for the season.

“We’ll lose three quarters of a million dollars this year, which for a small family farm is a hell of a lot of money,” he said.

“There’s no point keeping (the casual workers) for picking and pruning of the berries now”.

Adelaide Hills berry farm brothers, Sam and Dominic (t-shirt) Virgara walking through strawberries that cannot be picked and sold because they are on the edge of the fruit fly zone. Picture: Brett Hartwig

The 12 to 15 casual workers were previously made to pick the berries and freeze them, but now Mr Virgara said it cost more to pick and freeze them than it was to just leave them on the bush and go to waste.

 “We will start planning for the following season, which might not start until November,” he said.

“We’ll try and come back next year, but if there’s another outbreak, we’re in the same position”.

The farm is only allowed to sell their produce within the 15km radius of the quarantine zone if it was sprayed with methyl bromide, which Mr Virgara said will “destroy their brand”.

“We’ve spent millions of dollars on the infrastructure here, all the tunnel houses, the greenhouses, all the systems.

“To then spend all that money to get the produce to the point of sale and then to have that completely taken away from you, it’s devastating,” said Mr Virgara.

The fruit fly quarantine is expected to be lifted in May.

Originally published as Adelaide Hills Berry Farm has been forced to let go of their workers due to fruit fly quarantine