Prime Organics
Donnybrook, WA
Certified organic apples using soil to soul philosophy
Prime Organics is a family owned and operated Certified Organic apple orchard located at Donnybrook, in the heart of the Geographe fruit-growing region, south of Perth, WA. Jason Jarvis, third generation farmer, owns and manages the orchard which focuses on producing Certified Organic apples. Prime Organics, a long-time organic supplier to Woolworths, is a successful recipient of the Woolworths Organic Growth Fund. The business secured a grant of $301,000 to be used to increase availability of Certified Organic apples with planting in the new orchard and renewing plantings in the existing orchard in 2021.
Certified Organic since 2011, the farm has grown considerably since its beginnings in 1939 as a dairy farm and piggery. The farm has transitioned over the years to produce apples, plums, pears, and nashi as well as beef and eggs. The family started orcharding in circa 1968 and today the focus of the farm is on producing Certified Organic apples with a total of 28ha of orchard.
Educating people about where food comes from is important to the Jarvis family and they subscribe to the ‘soil to soul' philosophy both personally and professionally. Jason says, “it's especially important for children to realise that food just doesn't magically appear on the supermarket shelves and it's important that Australians plant their own vegetable gardens, watch them grow and reap what they sow”. Jason's son represents the 4th generation and is now attending agricultural school and plans to carry on the Jarvis family legacy.
“We believe human nutrition is key to health and this means the health of our soil, the health of our crops and our animals, and ultimately the health of our customers”. The family has been supplying Woolworths with Certified Organic apples for many years and they grow and pack all certified organic products on-farm. “The Woolworths grant will be used to expand and grow our core organic offering for WA,” Jason said.
“With imported apples restricted into WA and as the major organic apple grower in WA, there is a real responsibility for us to produce more high quality organic produce to make sure we can deliver the highest quality, organic apples to meet the growing demand from consumers”, Jason said.
“We are delighted to receive recognition and support from the largest retailer of organic food in Australia”, Jason concluded.