The Australian papaya industry is relatively small, but strong demand in markets such as Melbourne suggest the industry could expand.
At a field day in the Northern Territory this week, growers were given the latest information on the tropical fruit and were lectured on the pros and cons of entering the papaya industry.
Bob Williams from the NT Department of Primary Industry, says there are a number of reasons why growers should consider the crop.
“It’s a fairly quick crop to grow, you’ll be harvesting within 12 months and the idea is, that if you have a range of other crops, this is one which could add value to your overall revenue.”
Mr Williams says the markets in Adelaide and particularly Melbourne provide a “golden opportunity” for Top End producers.
“The biggest producer is Queensland and the bulk of that fruit goes to Brisbane, Sydney and Newcastle, so there’s a good opportunity in the Melbourne market,” he said.
“There’s product from Fiji going into Melbourne and Fiji now has some production problems and if the guys up here (Northern Territory) get it right they should find a market.”
Mr Williams says one of the big challenges with papaya is getting the fruit to look good.
“The product that you see in the markets up here is quite often bruised and scratched and it’s not appealing… the local people know it will still taste good and that’s why they buy it, but the consumers in Sydney and Melbourne, they buy with their eyes and if it doesn’t look good they don’t won’t to buy it.”
Alan Petersen owns an organic farm in Rum Jungle and sells his papaya locally.
He says the money can be good, especially if supply can be kept up during the Wet season.
He says he’d be cautious about expanding, because history has shown the papaya market can be “easily saturated”.
He says it’s a crop that keeps you busy seven days a week.
“It’s a little bit like dairy farming in that it’s an everyday occurrence, you’ve got to be around, you’ve got to be watchful, be on the job all the time if you want to be successful,
“If you just whack them in the backyard and let them go, you won’t get any milk out of them so to speak.”
Source: ABC