Ian and Jodi farm 2000 hectares in Western Australia’s “Grain Belt” where they grow rye for Kialla. The farm is about 21km north of Meckering, and it’s only 150km to Perth. Ian grew up on a sheep and wheat station further north, while Jodi comes from New Zealand.
They moved to their current farm in 1992. It’s a mixed grazing and broadacre cropping farm where they grow wheat, oats, rye, barley, lupins, and beans alongside their sheep.
Concerned about the growing incidences of chronic diseases and cancers we face in the modern world, Ian and Jodi are well aware of the impact of eating the toxic chemicals found in our foods. They are also aware of the effect using these poisons has on farmer’s health and so the move to organic practices made perfect sense to them both. They transitioned the whole farm over to organics gradually in a process that took 8 years. The farm has now been fully organic for 3 years.
Jodi has a double degree in Agri-Business Management, as well as a Masters degree in Business Law. They have an R&D company that they run alongside their farming business which focuses on carbon sequestration increasing soil organic carbon using soil biologicals to build soil fertility .
One process they have developed to enhance seed germination and crop yield involves ‘seed dressing’ where the seeds are coated in biological liquid before planting. These are all-natural products, allowed under certified organic inputs, which they also sell to other farmers as part of Jodi’s agricultural consultancy.
