The recent finding that four Maggie Beer Products had misleading origin labels has put regional food branding in the spotlight .

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission case – and those involving several other high-profile Barossa businesses – has some in the industry asking whether region-based marketing is a help or a hindrance to the growth and sustainability of food businesses.

“The more you move up the food production value chain, the harder it is in terms of regionality,” says Food South Australia CEO Catherine Barnett.

“The less processed a product is, the easier it is to be regional. For Riverland citrus, Coffin Bay oysters and Adelaide Hills’ cherries, for example, regionality is easy to maintain.”

But for many food producers who value-add to a local primary product such as milk, meat or fruit to produce yoghurt, smallgoods or jam, it may not be possible to source every necessary ingredient from the local region.

“For example, there is no local sugar,” says Barnett. “And there are also seasonal limitations on supply and other issues which may mean producers would need to look elsewhere to meet consumer demand.

“It’s a complex area; there’s really no intent from producers to mislead.”

Struggling to keep up

Rosie’s Free Range Eggs is an example of a regional food business whose demand outgrew its supply.

Based at Eudunda in the Barossa Valley, Rosie’s was forced to close after the ACCC found that it was sourcing cage eggs to supplement its free-range production.

Owner Rosie Bruhn claimed she was misled by her suppliers – a claim echoed by Maggie Beer’s daughter, Saskia Beer, who believed the pork she processed and sold as The Black Pig smallgoods came from heritage breeds. The ACCC found some of the products came from standard white breeds, which Saskia put down to a “miscommunication” with her supplier.

While Barnett did not wish to comment on specific cases, she says it is difficult for producers to manage the change in expectations from consumers, who are increasingly reading labels and asking questions.

“Food businesses need to have a point of reference so that if there’s a problem, the consumer can go back to the place of production. But a bigger problem arises when the place of production is also the brand.”

Two approaches

There are two possible solutions – both at diametric ends of the debate.

Barnett says that focussing on the bigger picture, rather than regionality, would avoid many of these problems and encourage growth in the food sector.

“You don’t want to mislead people, but seasonal and regional limitations leave no option.

Food SA CEO Catherine Barnett.

“In a national and certainly in an international context, the branding of local products should be labelled ‘Australian’ rather than attributed to a particular region. We have such diversity that is hard to identify what a regional product would be.

“We’re much better off celebrating our diversity and the more the states get together to brand Australian produce collectively, the more it will work.”

However, Regional Food Industry Association chair and Barossa food producer Jan Angas believes producers need to embrace the consumer trend towards regionality.

“The regional food space is experiencing a revolution in the understanding of what the businesses are about and what the consumer expects,” says Angas.

“Twenty years ago Australia associated ‘regional food’ with France and Italy and Spain, and our wine industry was having to deal with restrictions being imposed by France and Portugal on using the names Champagne and Port on sparkling and fortified wines.

“In the 1980s it became law in the wine industry that if you use a regional name the content has to be minimum 85 per cent from the region – ie Barossa Shiraz. The food industry is 20 to 30 years behind, but the strength regional identity brought to wine could also be an opportunity for food, especially when linked with tourism.”

Changing times

Barossa Fine Foods is an interesting example of the regionality and brand conundrum. It was originally a stall in the Central Market which the Knoll family bought in 1991; now it employs 230 people and operates through 15 retail stores around the state. The product is sourced from all over South Australia, including the Barossa, but is processed in the industrial northern suburbs of Adelaide.

“It used to be the producers who were driving the regional food movement, but now it’s the consumers,” says Angas.

“They buy Barossa bacon because they want it to be from the Barossa. I don’t think Barossa Fine Foods realises it, but they are on notice by the consumer.”

Company general manager Andreas Knoll doesn’t see the use of the Barossa name as a problem.

“Barossa Fine Foods has successfully trademarked the name without any complaints registered during the process,” he says.

“We believe we make a positive contribution to the region through our use of local ingredients, our local business and community involvement, and by contribution to the region’s reputation for food and wine excellence. We are very proud to continue our long and close association with the Barossa Valley.”

Barossa Fine Foods purchased the renowned Schulz Butchers in 2002 and continues to produce a small amount from its Angaston premises, but the majority of its products are produced outside the Barossa, which Knoll says has always been clearly stated on the packaging.

“We understand that there could be a few customers who would pick up our smallgoods for the first time and be surprised to read that our main manufacturing facility is in Edinburgh North, not the Barossa. We welcome the discussion; we’ve always been honest and open about the history of the business. This can be seen on our website and numerous media articles.”

Angas argues that the food landscape has changed – and that absolute authenticity is increasingly important to the consumer.

“Maggie and the Knolls never set out to capitalise on the Barossa branding, but they engaged the Barossa branding, taking on some of the traditions of the Barossa and putting them into a commercial business.

“Thirty years ago Barossa was a style of food from the consumers’ point of view. Barossa is no longer an adjective, it’s a noun. It’s a place. It’s the people and it’s what’s grown there. It’s a food presence.

“Maggie Beer Produce has been a stimulant for regional strength, but with the size the company has grown to, it can no longer be 100 per cent Barossa … we shouldn’t be bagging her for that.

“We need those big businesses like Beerenberg, Haigh’s and San Remo. Those companies are fantastic suppliers and exporters, but they will never be the backbone of our regional tourism.”

The South Australian Tourism Commission clearly believes the regionality is a big seller. Last year, it made a successful $6 million television advertisement – The Barossa. Be Consumed – which pushed the food and wine traditions of the Barossa and the unique experiences it offers.

“The Barossa. Be Consumed commercial expressed it well and the results are of high economic value to the region,” Angas says.

Barossa food and wine producers Jan and John Angas.

Taking it to the next level

Angas was part of the group that set up the Barossa Trust Mark, an aspirational standard founded on the values of origin, integrity, quality, environment and community.

The Barossa Trust Mark concept was launched last year and is the first of its kind in the world to include wine, food and tourism products and experiences that emulate these values. Eligibility for the Trust Mark is gained through an application process and the first 25 products to receive it will be released this month.

Angas believes regional food businesses can command a premium price by embracing local seasonality, rather than covering it with produce brought in from elsewhere.

“If you embrace seasonality, limited supply will mean more premium prices, but it will be less commercial,” she says. “If a business is growing commercially and making more units then tell the story, say that you’ve brought in other farmers or makers to help supplement supply. It’s about honesty.”

Angas has just been on a tour of food-producing regions in Italy, which she believes provides a template for SA’s regional food industry.

“We are in such a good position to learn from the world and that’s where we need to invest more strongly.

“When lifestyle changers buy into the region, instead of turning our noses up and calling them hobby farmers, we should be showing them the agricultural opportunities and encouraging them to grow speciality crops to make a food product instead of just buying a view.

“You can import food from anywhere in the world, such as pate from Paris, but if you want people to get on a plane and come out to Australia, then regional food and wine from places like the Barossa and Kangaroo Island is the key attraction. They want a feel of the lifestyle and to know the place where the food comes from.

“That is the heart of Tourism Australia’s newest campaign, Restaurant Australia – it is the elements, not just lumping us together as Australian food.”