It is also a  great time in the kitchen, cooking all those tasty dishes with fresh seasonal vegetables.  

Here at Sunset Coast Organics we enjoy fresh harvests of winter Kale, Cavalo Nero, Cabbage, Broccolli, Coloured Silverbeet, baby Turnips, baby Raddish and beetroot.    

We still have a consistant supply of our salad range available as the demand seems to grow each year.

One of the keys to a healthy garden is planning your'e crop rotation, wether you have a few square meters or several acres its all the same in the end.

Below is a pic of some of our Kale in production right now, this is being distributed throughout the organic specialty stores in Auckland and has proven to be very popular at this time of year.

Below is a pic of the same garden in summer, we have sown a green manure crop to help build soil biology and fix minerals into the soil.

Certified Vs Non Certified:  This update is based on information from the bio-gro news letter - Chair person of Bio Gro - Chris Morrison. 

The issue of Certified verses Non Certified organic products is a constant challenge for all of us as growers.

Please remember certified organic means you as the consumer has a guarantee.

Certified producers go to alot of extra effort and expense to ensure this gurantee.  Where as you have no idea what the non certified organic producer has used to get their product to market e.g. using Round Up, or growing vegetables on ground that still has chemical residues.

Certified organic producers, not to mention consumers, are challenged by the selling of produce that is NOT certified organic and that which IS certified organic, in the same market.
Recently I heard of a grower who grew a crop of BioGro-certified broccoli. This was a good idea as there is often a shortage of certified organic broccoli. But when the certified broccoli was taken to market, some retailers decided to buy the cheaper ‘non certified’ broccoli rather than the ‘certified organic’ option. I have no issue with a retailer choosing a cheaper option if they are choosing between
two or more certified organic products but unfortunately this is not always the case. I strongly believe that when possible, consumers should always be presented with the ‘certified organic’ option, and that it should certainly be the preferred option for health food stores or buyers in similar environments. I also believe that organic produce should ONLY be referred to as ‘organic’ if it is in fact ‘certified organic’. Currently the law in New Zealand is fairly vague on this issue.
Some supermarkets are driving more organic growers to get certified – a reflection of their policy to only accept fully-certified products in future.
Chris Morrison

From all the team at Sunset Coast Organics we would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our customers for your support in the past and to let you know we are working towards a brighter future for everyone involved in the industry and to the consumer who helps make what we do all worth while.

Kind Regards

Jason Clarke

Sunset Coast Organics - Specialists in Certified Organic fresh pre mix salads and gourmet vegetables since 1998.

Anisa & Jason Clarke