Conference is a blooming success

By Kath Gannaway
THE Yarra Valley played host to the 12th International Conference of The Australian Lavender Growers Association (TALGA) over the weekend of 18 to 20 May.
More than 100 delegates and speakers attended the conference at the RACV Healesville Country Club.
Members of the Healesville Aboriginal Children’s Choir entertained delegates prior to the official opening of the conference by McEwen MP and Federal Tourism Minister, Fran Bailey.
Clive Larkman of Larkman Nurseries, a local grower of lavender plants and member of the Yarra Valley Regional Lavender Association said members who convened the conference were pleased with the success of the event.
Delegates heard world lavender expert Susyn Andrews speak on plant identification and the future direction for oil standards.
Other speakers, including local agricultural industry operators, covered topics ranging from food handling to aromatherapy, quality assurance, tourism, packaging, harvesting, distillation and soil structure.
Mr Larkman said while the industry was still quite small in the Yarra Valley, it had the potential to meet a particular segment of the market.
“We don’t have enough product to keep the big companies happy but there is definitely a growing market for the Warratinas of the world,” he said referring to the valley’s most recognised lavender business, Warratina Lavender Farm at Wandin, which combines lavender oil and product production with tourism.
Mr Larkman, who estimates his business has sold about half million lavender plants over the last five or six years, predicted a growing demand for quality locally distilled lavender oil.
“We are hoping people will start to see the difference between professionally grown, good quality Australian lavender oil, and the cheap imports,” he said.
Lavender-based tourism, another facet of the industry, which is seen to have huge potential, was also given a boost at the conference with the launch of the Australian Lavender Trail.
The trail tracks lavender farms all around Australia providing a ready-made itinerary for tourists in search of fields of purple, lavender cuisine and the good oil.