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Issue 1 ~ Mar-Apr 1997 From the editorSammy Ringer With very heartfelt thanks to all who have helped - Meg Barrett Larry Geno Peter Hardwick Sibylla Hess-Buschmann Lillian Okorn Jan Tilden my sister Karin and, of course, Mum We live in an era of buzzwords and instant flavours of the month. Technology rules (OK?), but its ascent to power has left many with the feeling that something was lost. You can't touch, sense or smell a digitised object and, despite what they say, the world wide web isn't really making anyone feel connected. My real joy in bushfoods began the first time I grew, pruned, dried, crushed and bagged my first 50 gms of Lemon scented myrtle. The strong, crisp smell filled my small kitchen and I (like many others before me, I'm sure) added my precious new herb to just about everything I cooked for the next few months. Then I discovered Tangy Ironbark ... and midym ... and Lemon Wardanee ... I found myself an instant dangerous driver - swivelling my head as I passed clumps of roadside vegetation - 'Is that edible? I wonder if that's the native raspberry...?' ?' I found connection with the lush and beautiful countryside I lived in. I found myself looking and seeing things I had overlooked before. Later, I found myself getting excited about the commercial and cultural aspects of bushfoods - I planted midyim and riberry on my small block and planned a cottage industry based on jams and dried goods... alas, my first batch of Riberry jam brought home the fact that I am no cook - and so my bushfood garden is now for private enjoyment and experimentation. This magazine is also a seedling to me - rather hopeful, very small and just a touch unsure. In this and coming issues, I will try to look at the many aspects of bushfoods which make them a very special industry and a unique part of our culture and our sense of being together. I look forward to contributions from readers of greater or lesser knowledge, of academic or culinary skills - of optimism and pragmatism. I also look forward to feedback from you - this magazine has been created to give you the information you want. Its shape and focus may change as it 'settles in' but I can't refine its contents without your input. On the technical side - although there is no correct spelling, I have used bushfood (one word) throughout. I have also made every attempt to use the most common common name for all species. As this is the first issue, there is no 'Letters to the Editor' page (I didn't count the one from my mum wishing me luck.) I hope you, the reader, will fill this gap. For now, please enjoy reading this first issue as much as I've enjoyed putting it together. |
Index Issue1From the EdNotes - the RiberryBushfoods - what are they?State of the IndustryEat your gardenFacts and fictions...Lemon myrtleNursery - farm - factoryThe art of FoodThe quintessential QuandongEatingDon't Bugger the BushBush tucker womanProfile - Peter HardwickLeichhardtBushfarms/Wild harvestMarketing challengesCSIRO reports - AcaciaWhat they're payingNewsNursery NewsProductsResourcesA brief word from Bushtucker Supply |
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