Brian Harris

Brian grew up on a citrus farm in the Hills District and managed his parent’s farm from a young age. His Central Coast story started when he purchased a Mangrove Mountain citrus farm in 1965. Back then, he sold oranges and lemons through an agent and to fresh juice manufacturers in Sydney, Gosford, and Parramatta.

Many juicing factories closed after the influx of cheaper fruit concentrate and consumers started to favour unblemished fruit at the markets.

‘Our local oranges are absolutely delicious but they’re not always pretty! Once buyers started favouring appearance over taste, it became more difficult to sell our fruit at the markets’ said Brian.

Surplus citrus fruit became a problem on the Central Coast and that motivated Eastcoast Juices to set up their own fresh fruit juice manufacturing.

‘Their initiative really helped all the local growers,’ said Brian. ‘To this day, once our fruit is harvested, Eastcoast Juices packs our blemish-free oranges and lemons for the Sydney Markets and squeezes the tasty surplus for fresh juice.’

‘For 25 years, I’ve supplied the best oranges and lemons that I could,’ added Brian.

Ross Hitchcock

Ross Hitchcock’s farming story goes back to the 1800s, when his family had farmland, including citrus trees, in the Hills and Hawkesbury districts. Ross’s grandfather moved to Kulnura on the Central Coast and purchased the current farm in 1936. The property had some rich history including an old water-powered sawmill on site.

The farm started out with passionfruit, followed by tomatoes, stone fruit, oranges and lemons. The fresh fruit juice market was in its infancy, so fruit was mainly sold for whole consumption rather than juicing.

Sustainable farming

Sustainable farming wasn’t often discussed back then, but Ross’ grandfather had a deep connection with the land. He was way ahead of his time. Winters were traditionally spent relocating soil that had been eroded away by intensive farming techniques. By setting up erosion sediment traps and removing deep drains, Ross’ grandfather prevented much of the erosion.

Ross and his father continued the legacy of sustainable farming and environmental protection. Today, the grassy sediment traps are a wildlife haven. Ross works closely with the University of Western Sydney assisting entomology

Community agitator

Ross describes himself as a ‘community agitator’, promoting good causes and pursuing major environmental issues through the relevant authorities. He holds an interesting collection of local historical documents and photos, which he has shared with the community. Ross also enjoys repairing his farm equipment in his workshop.

Reg Bennet

Reg Bennett’s farm is a story about family and community. His father bought 80 acres of prime Mangrove Mountain land in 1936 to grow oranges and lemons. He cleared 14 acres by hand with a combination of gelignite and hard work. After the war, bulldozers finished the job. Today, Reg and his brother are successful second generation farmers with 40 acres each.

Reg has seen the changing citrus landscape over the years. ‘There used to be a few thousand acres of citrus on the Central Coast’ Reg said. ‘When concentrate came in from overseas, it put most local farmers out of business. We diversified into summer fruits, passionfruit and tomatoes.

Once upon a time, growing passionfruit and tomatoes was like an apprenticeship for farmers; it’s where you started out before you made the grade as a citrus grower. We returned to our roots and that kept us going until the demand for fresh juice returned.’