Rob and Nita Lennon own and run Gundooee Organics, producing organic wagyu beef at Dunedoo, north of Mudgee in Central NSW. They are finalists in the Vogue Entertaining and Travel Produce Awards. Winners will be announced May 11. We caught up with Rob at Taste of Sydney in March.
We started producing organic wagyu beef because… organic farming is a way of thinking and a way of life that’s right for us. I don’t come from a farming background - my parents were accountants - but I always loved going canoeing and camping around the Gloucester area. Eventually I thought, I love being out of the city, why not find a way to live out here? So I got my truck-driver’s license and used to carry wheat from all over NSW. Then I studied farm management at Marcus Oldham Farm Management College in Geelong, and spent the next 10 years managing mixed farms through central and northern NSW.
There was never any question that we’d take the organic route. It’s the vibe!
When we bought our own land 10 years ago, there was never any question that we’d take the organic route. It’s the vibe! Organic growing is a passive approach. It creates the right environment for what we want to exist or grow, instead of focusing on getting rid of what you don’t want - a positive approach to things. Farm systems are complex - if you do one thing, it’s hard to quantify the effects. If you kill one thing, you end up having to kill more.
We’re encouraging deep-rooted perennial grasses which access nutrients and moisture deeper in the soil profile. This gives the cattle feed a more complex battery of nutrients, and also allows pastures to hang on to provide grazing through dry periods, and bounce back faster when we do get some rain. We use grazing management and ‘competition’ to control weeds, one example being in an old ‘sheep camp’ area where we replaced a huge Paterson’s Curse invasion with native pasture without any inputs. And we’re experimenting with pasture cropping - using the same land to grow feed crops for the cattle in our native pasture paddocks.
Gundooee beef is different from supermarket beef because… the cattle are fed on native perennial pastures, and it’s wagyu. Both the pasture and the breed combined provide great flavour, as well as providing some great health advantages including a good Omega 3 : 6 fatty acid ratio. We also take great care with stock handling. I’ve followed the animals though the slaughter line [at Cowra abattoir] - I figure if they’ve got to go through it I should face up to it too. They’re completely calm throughout, and that makes a huge difference to the quality of the meat.
The most satisfying thing about producing food is… days like today [at Taste of Sydney], spending time talking with people who are interested in what we do. Our nearest organic neighbour is about 100km away, so it’s great to chat with people who care about organic food.
The most frustrating thing about producing food is… the gap between producing “animals” or “carcasses” and producing food. The system isn’t really set up to reward producers for producing food. The focus on consistency and quantity at the lowest cost doesn’t encourage producers to take pride in the quality and flavour of what they grow. It’s consumers wanting to know more about what they eat that leads to farmers making the effort to produce great food.
It’s consumers wanting to know more about what they eat that leads to farmers making the effort to produce great food.
The best meal I’ve eaten this year was… no doubt a barbeque with family and friends at home. They call me Barbeque Bob, because too many barbeques is never enough. Some of our beef and a fresh salad and baked vegies - you can’t go wrong.
My most treasured food memory is… throwing some green eucalyptus leaves on the (wood-fired) barbie. My Mum used to love the smell. She’s gone now but we still do it.
Slow Food members can make food in Sydney better, cleaner and fairer by… promoting the vibe! Don’t take it too seriously - just turn the tellie off, enjoy the experience of gathering and preparing food, and then spend the time with family and friends having a nice meal.
You can find ‘Gundooee Organics’ wagyu beef at… Sydney restaurants Bécasse, Etch, Plan B, Longrain, and Sean’s Panorama, and occasionally at Glebe Point Diner and Bei Amici. Also now in some Canberra restaurants including the Ginger Room. It’s also available through five butcher shops in Sydney: TJ’s Quality Meats in Balmain, Hudson Meats in Cammeray and Surry Hills, Pino’s Meats in Kogarah, Dulwich Hill Gourmet Meats and now T&R Gourmet Butchery in Double Bay.
Food miles are a big issue for us, so we’ll never export, and won’t send our beef to Melbourne or Brisbane. How many foods can you get in Sydney but not Melbourne?
How many foods can you get in Sydney but not Melbourne?
Fruit:
Asian greens
Asian greens