We love a little thinking outside the square and nothing inspires more than seeing people in our industry branching out and nailing it! Nestled just outside the country town of Cummins on the Eyre Peninsula, the team behind Korinya Farm Gate is smashing it out of the park.
Run by husband and wife, Scott and Mary-anne Mickan, Korinya Farm Gate is a family owned and run boutique butcher, a paddock-to-plate experience and a destination for tasty workshops and events.
We caught up with the lovely Mary-anne to take a peek behind the scenes of this dynamic enterprise.
“You could say it was always on the cards that Scott and I would end up on the land, but the way we’re doing it has certainly grown and become bigger than we could have imagined. It’s amazing, I feel quite humbled.
“I grew up in a small town near the Barossa Valley and left home at a young age to get into agriculture, and Scott knew from early on that he wanted to be a farmer. He’s the third generation on our farm and we live here with our four children. It was the only industry for me — I love the outdoors, I adore animals and I love that no two days are ever the same. You’re never quite sure what’s ahead,” Mary-Ann says.
And we’re certainly excited about what’s ahead for this business that’s well and truly diversified, as Mary-anne explains.
“We’re a boutique butcher selling pasture raised and grass-fed beef, lamb and pork — so you know it’s very clean, nutrient dense food. We offer different cuts and our focus is encouraging people to be sustainable in their eating, which has really taken off. You can buy our meats online, but we also ship to the lower Eyre Peninsula, and we ship to Adelaide and find a lot of people who have ordered from Barossa or Clare way then collect their meat from there.
“But, we’re not just a butcher — we chose to value-add on all avenues of the farm, so we also offer workshops and events. With our on-farm workshops, we teach people about creating food from scratch (like cheese and gourmet sausages) and we then show them how to make dishes using those products, which they can enjoy with a local organic coffee at the end.
“Our biggest focus is showing you how great food can taste without preservatives, and we also make essential oils and body care using all-natural products. We’re running regenerative farming tours for school kids and other local groups. We also still run a self-replacing merino flock and we’re moving our cropping program into regenerative cropping. We just want to empower people and give them an experience to remember and give them great memories while they’re also learning something valuable,” she explains.
“And for people who can’t get over to the Eyre Peninsula, we’re really excited to be launching our online workshops very soon, so you’ll be able to jump online, buy our kit including all the products you need and then invite friends and family around while I run you through the workshop online. It’s a lot of fun!
“We’re so grateful for all the support we’ve received, our community has been absolutely amazing. And we’re really passionate about the fact that South Australian farmers are doing a great job at what they do. We’re doing things a little differently (which is not for everybody) but we’re in great company in our beautiful state.”
You can find out more about this awesome team at www.korinyafarmgatemarket.com.au.
We LOVE what they’re doing and we’re sure you will too.
