Mad Mountain Family Farm
We first discovered Mad Mountain products at Murwillumbah farmers market and fell in love with their sweet chilli sauce and their incredible tea range which feature in many of our hampers.
Tell us a bit about how Mad Mountain Family Farm got started?
"Tim and I retired and moved to Tomewin from the South Coast of NSW. Our goal was to build a permaculture food forest on our property to live a more sustainable and self-sufficient lifestyle by producing much of our own food, medicine and other goods.
As we became “mad” about permaculture and homesteading we spent more and more time collecting and planting a diverse range of fruit trees and underplanting with edible shrubs, culinary and medicinal herbs, plants for wildlife and lots of chilli plants.
As the abundance of harvest started to be produced, we created a variety of natural, delicious organic canned products to share with friends and family.
We grew and used medicinal herbs to use as an alternative to synthetic pharmaceuticals and their negative side effects. Our fascination with herbal medicine and the general health benefits of herbs has led us to create a variety of delicious and healthy herbal teas.
We started doing markets to sell some excess products and to help pay for farm maintenance and upkeep. Community members were so enthusiastic about our products that it inspired us to keep improving and developing new products.
We grow all of our own plants from seeds and cuttings and we sell some of these organic plants at our stall also."
Do you remember what the first crops you planted were?
"We originally planted dozens of fruit trees and later used legumes and “chop and drop” crops such as pigeon pea to build good soil around the property. Our first big harvest crop was chillies which we all love to eat."
What was the very first product you made?
"It was either our sweet chilli sauce or bread and butter pickles."
Do you have a history with cooking/producing?
"My Italian grandmother taught me how to cook from an early age and I have always enjoyed cooking and canning products. We love being creative in the kitchen and experimenting with flavours, spices and herbs. Our family enjoy a range of multicultural cuisines and this is reflected in our product range."
Is there anything unique, particularly interesting or special about the farm?
"Tim and I were in our 60s when we started the farm, having no previous agriculture or sales experience. We have found that it inspires people to see what we have created in only 5 years and that they could do the same. Our farm is not only sustainable and productive but also beautiful as it was very much inspired by the Sydney botanical gardens.
We are still amazed at how effective the permaculture methods are at reducing workload and the need for watering, mulching, fertilising and in particular pest and disease control. There is such a diverse range of plants, birds, insects and other organisms forming a complex and very stable food web that almost completely removes the need to use insecticide. There is such an abundance of life in our gardens that pests very rarely become a problem.
We make worm and compost tea to fertilise our gardens and keep our soil biologically active. This is a wonderful thing to do for any garden and it boosts the plants resistance to pests and disease. It also helps the soil to absorb and maintain moisture which is most important as our farm has no dams or access to town water. We run solely on rainwater collected and stored in water tanks.
As our fruit trees grow and start to produce, we create new products. We are always sourcing new varieties of plants and it is fun experimenting with the produce. The business is constantly evolving and keeps us all busy and motivated."
What do you love most about the business?
"We love being able to work with nature and we love how the whole family gets involved in different aspects of the business that they find enjoyable. Seeing our grandkids picking flowers and chillies from the gardens with smiles on their faces might just be the best bit. Tim and I have a great day every time we run a market; we like meeting like minded people in our customers. We love the sense of community we get from attending our markets and supplying our community with healthy, natural and organic products."
What is your vision for Mad Mountain Family Farm?
"We are going to continue to expand our range of products as more of our trees start to bear fruit. We are getting into mushroom growing and bee keeping and, in the future, may run courses to teach others what we do here."
Mad Mountain Family Farm products feature in:
Tea For Two
Caveman Gift Hamper
Spoil Them Hamper
You can follow the Mad Mountain journey on Facebook or Instagram and try more Mad Mountain products by visiting them at markets throughout the Tweed region.