Sustainable Food Hub

Find Out About The New Home Delivery Collaboration Coming Soon

Announcement:

After 7 years of running Farmbox home delivery on the Sunshine Coast, we have made the tough decision to close the Shambhala Farmbox service in its current form.

Unfortunately, we’ve tried many different ways of making it viable and we’ve reached a point where we need to say goodbye to this offering. We understand that this may be sudden but it has been an ongoing situation and a very tough call to make. We are sad and we’ve loved serving you over the years and bringing you fresh local produce to your homes.

The good news is that we will still be at Kawana Farmers Markets on Saturdays and Noosa Farmers Market on Sundays. We would love to see you there and for you to continue to receive your local fresh produce that we love to share with the community.

Some exciting changes are also brewing! We are collaborating with the Noosa Farmers Market to bring you a more diverse home delivery service. We are excited about the changes and look forward to supporting more local farmers and servicing the Sunshine Coast community. In a couple of weeks, you will receive an email with an invite to join the new service. The new service will be managed by Noosa and Kawana Farmers Market Team and will be supporting local producers like us.

We are excited to continue growing and supplying to this new home delivery service. In the meantime, we will be continuing to grow fresh organic produce and flowers, will go to the Farmers Markets, and are excited about the launch of our next 12 Week Food Growing Course.

We apologise for any inconvenience this has caused in the interim. We are very grateful for your support over the years and looking into the future.

With much Love and Gratitude,

Craig, Chrissy, and the Shambhala Team

Friday 16th April 2021

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Produce

Farmers are the life-blood of every community.  They nurture our food so our food nurtures us.  We especially believe in food that is nutrient-rich, and grown in active & alive soil.

The produce at our farmer’s market stalls & in our weekly home-delivered FarmBoxes is from our own family farm in the Noosa Hinterland, & from a bevy of passionate growers supplying to our Sustainable Food Hub from the Sunshine Coast, South East Queensland & beyond.

We’re grateful to know many of our growers, and we specifically & exclusively supply from growers who practice sustainable, holistic & regenerative farming practices.  Much of the produce provided to our Sustainable Food Hub is local – from family farms in the South East Queensland & Northern New South Wales region.  When we’re not able to supply food from local & sustainable growers, we go further afield.

Buying Policy

You are here because you want real wholesome food, nourishing food that sustains the health of us, our families & the blessed earth from which it’s all grown.  We’re grateful to be with you heading in the same direction.

We’ve stepped out of the business-as-usual system to contribute the change we all wish to see in the world – nutrient-rich food, healthy land and farmers, and delighted consumers and community.

Our Sustainable Food Hub brings together nutritious food based on these key principles.

Local

Local food is fresher, packed with more nutrition, it’s seasonal to the climate where we live, and it supports local economies and community connection.

When Shambhala Farm haven’t grown the produce, we source as local as possible from our community of farmers, producers and suppliers based within 5 hours drive of the Sunshine Coast.

Being farmers ourselves, we’re certainly aware of the vulnerabilities of weather impacts and seasonal variations.  For these reasons we do source from growers further afield for sustainable produce and products not readily accessible in our local catchment.

That said, most produce and producers are locally based in our regional community helping us access diverse quality food all year round.

Sustainable

Produce available from Shambhala Farm is grown with a variety of sustainable methods using principles of ecology and biological controls that replenish soils & are ethical, responsible & practical.  Shambhala Farm have always supported sustainable agricultural methods – holistic & regenerative farming.  Growing with these methods allows nature to be the key farmer in the growing process.  The main sustainable methods for produce provided by Shambhala Farm Sustainable Food Hub are briefly described.

Certified Organic-

Organic certification means produce has been grown by a method, largely chemical-free, approved by an organic certifying body.  Some of the main Australian groups are ACO, NASAA & Demeter.  Certified organic does not necessarily mean spray-free – applications of certain approved ‘naturally based’ sprays are allowed as part of the production process.

Ecologically Produced-

Many farmers grow ‘organically’ but do not carry certification; these growers go ‘beyond-organic’, caring for earth and people factors in a deeper way.  Farming is demanding & usually farmers don’t have spare time & finances to maintain strict record-keeping required to prove their methods.  For this reason, we support sustainable & regenerative growers without certification.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM)-

IPM manages ‘pest’ plants & animals by knowing their lifecycle & interaction with the environment, taking appropriate action at the right time to reduce nuisance.  IPM works with nature’s rhythms, allowing pest prevention & control to be energy-efficient & effective.

Biodynamic-

Biodynamic production works with soil fertility, plant growth & livestock care as ecologically interrelated tasks.  It includes working with nature’s rhythms to help get the most abundant growth & harvest, & emphasises use of manures & compost.