Native limes proving a bitter sweet success story

THE fingerlime harvest is getting under way in northern NSW and growers such as Georgie MacDougall and Sheryl Rennie are hoping for a record season.

070112 citrus orchard

THE fingerlime harvest is getting under way in northern NSW and growers such as Georgie MacDougall and Sheryl Rennie are hoping for a record season.

Partners in Wild Fingerlime Group, the women are at the forefront of a small but dedicated group of growers who are steadily building an industry here and overseas, based on a native citrus.

Fingerlime pulp is aptly called citrus caviar, with little beads of flesh in colours ranging from pale yellow to green, and pink to deep burgundy. It's a product that's exciting chefs around the world, and is used in seafood, Japanese and other Asian cuisine, salads and desserts.

Without official figures on the size of the fingerlime market, last year's estimated turnover of about $500,000 could jump to $1 million annually within a few years.

Ms MacDougall and Ms Rennie formed their working partnership in 2004, with the former covering sales and marketing and the latter directing production and market access. Ms Rennie, who grew up on a farm, has been growing fingerlimes and other native foods for 20 years.

Ms MacDougall's background was in the financial markets but she made a treechange to northern NSW in 1996, rehabilitating a degraded farm.

"I planted some fingerlimes, which are native to my area, after being inspired by a conversation with (food author) Maeve O'Mara.

"When they started fruiting, I found no one really knew about them. I went looking for advice and met Sheryl, who's a bushfood expert. Before long, she said: 'You and I should go into business together.'

"She knew other small growers, so we formed the Australian Fingerlime Growers Association to bring people together to share knowledge about how to grow quality fruit and get a decent price for it." From there, the two formed Wild Fingerlime Group as a marketing arm.

Wild Fingerlime Group exports about 70 per cent of its fruit, mostly to Europe, but plans to expand the Australian market significantly this year. Chefs have driven demand so far but as the product becomes better known, more householders are looking to buy fresh fruit. Having supplied into Melbourne in recent years, this summer will see a retail push into Sydney.

"Quality is key for us," says Ms Rennie. "You have to grow the best varieties and pick them at the right time. If not fully ripe when picked, they're bitter. They must be packaged properly and kept cool."

Supply was insufficient to meet European demand last year because of cool, wet conditions, but hopes are high this year. "Many of our trees are five or six years old now, when they start pumping out fruit," says Ms Rennie.

"We're not going to get rich from it but it's very satisfying that we've built such a good reputation that buyers fly in from overseas", says Ms MacDougall. "We're adding new customers and growers and are developing new, value-added products. It's quite exciting building an industry for a native crop the world didn't know about."