Fresh focus on the future

Dried Fruits Australia is pleased to introduce its two newest board members.

Rowena Smart and Ashley Chabrel will fill grower positions on the board and bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to their roles.

They share their background, look at the challenges facing the industry and outline the opportunities they see for the future.

Ashley Chabrel

What's your involvement in the dried grape industry and how did that come about?

I am a grower in Barmera, South Australia, where I run a winegrape and dried grape vineyard with my wife. We have grown Sunglo since 2015. We were looking to diversify from winegrapes alone and the new varieties and production systems got us interested in dried fruit.

As a grower, what challenges do you face? And what challenges do you see facing the industry as a whole?

This year has presented more than its fair share of challenges for us. Disease issues, weather, increasing input costs and labour.

I see the industry-wide issues as including biosecurity threats, labour availability, water availability and the transition to the next generation of growers. Conversely, what opportunity do see that exist for the dried grape industry?

Ironically I think one of the big opportunities for the industry is borne from the labour availability challenge. The solution is often mechanisation and I think on the production side there is still scope for more efficiency gains. New varieties are another potentially large opportunity. There is the opportunity to lift yields and lower risk profile for the whole industry. Our growing regions are still a competitive opportunity. We are clean and green and have the climate to grow premium products.

Why did you join the DFA board? What do you hope to bring to the board and the dried grape industry?

We have been looked after by the whole industry as relatively new members. All parts of the industry have supported us in multiple ways and being part of the board is one way I can give back to industry. I have had board experience in the past and I hope to be able to help continue the good work of the DFA through my experience.

What do you see for the future of the dried grape industry?

I hope the industry can expand in size and provide opportunities for growers and processors. Hopefully our reputation for quality can be maintained and even improved.

Rowena Smart

Can you tell us about your background? What's your involvement in the dried grape industry and how did that come about?

I have worked in the health and fitness industry for 12 years, as a personal trainer and nutrition coach. In 2015 I started my transition to be fully online, which gave us more time to develop our properties to dried fruit. I was actually raised on a dried fruit property in Red Cliffs. My parents are John and Jenny Hunt, and I had no intention of following in their footsteps, but things change.

What varieties do you grow?

My husband and I grow Sunmuscat.

As a grower, what challenges do you face? And what challenges do you see facing the industry as a whole?

This year like everyone else we have faced disease issues with the weather and lack of chemical availability. But I think as it is with all horticultural industries, the increasing production costs will mean that growers are going to have to diversify to make their profit margin worthwhile.

We are young and fresh into the industry ourselves. Before this we grew vegetables, so we are excited to transition the knowledge we have from that industry to dried fruit. Conversely, what opportunity do see that exist for the dried grape industry?

The dried grape industry is only scratching the surface of their potential. There is a lot of focus on it being a baked good product. I never see clients eating a handful of dried grapes without it being suggested because they just don’t think about it.

I also can’t see why sultanas can’t be on the same level as medjool dates in the health food cooking industry.

Why did you join the DFA board? What do you hope to bring to the board and the dried grape industry?

You can’t expect an industry to grow and change if you’re not going to be involved in it. I think my enthusiasm and a fresh perspective is always a positive for any industry.

What do you see for the future of the dried grape industry?

More Australian dried grapes. I would love to see less imported dried grapes coming in when we have the ability to grow more in Australia. It’s such a mechanical industry, we aren’t weighed down with the kind of labour costs of other industries. Plus I want to see it used more in everyone's day to day life in more versatile ways, which means being innovative in other trending social media platforms to get the younger generation involved in eating it but also how it grows. v