Exciting News!!
From June 2012, you will be able to purchase Sunny Ridge strawberries from our Main Ridge Farmgate all year round. We have purchased a 300 acre farm on the Sunshine Coast QLD, and will source our strawberries from that farm from June to October.
"We have travelled the world to source varieties that grow in our environment and have grown over 100 varieties in over 30 years," Mick Gallace
Mick Gallace
Sunny Ridge spans 350 acres of land in Main Ridge and Boneo, Victoria Australia. We grow strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries.
Growing Strawberries at Sunny Ridge
- Strawberries yield their largest fruit in their first growing season, so most of Sunny Ridge’s strawberry fields are replanted each year
- All strawberries are planted and picked by hand
- After being picked, strawberries must be cooled to approx four degrees within an hour of being picked. Every hour outside this temperature reduces the shelf life of a strawberry by one day
- Specific strawberries will be chosen for their suitability for the various packaging styles and markets. Any fruit that is not up to standard is removed
- Strawberries are sorted into size gradings of regular, large, extra large and extra-extra large
Sunny Ridge and the Environment
- Sunny Ridge actively trials strawberry varieties, analysing them on the basis of flavour, sweetness, shelf life, length of cropping, susceptibility to disease and more
- Sunny Ridge operates off bore water and dams, so water conservation is extremely important. Son Mathew Gallace has been working with local growers on an initiative to turn waste water into Class 'A' water which is suitable for vegetable and fruit crop irrigation
- Natural filtration systems, created by indigenous vegetation ensure dam water of high quality
- Sunny Ridge uses an integrated pest management system to control growing conditions and minimise the use of sprays and chemicals
Quality control
- The SQF2000 Quality code was developed for companies within the food industry
- Sunny Ridge is involved in this quality assurance scheme to ensure premium quality in all products
- The program covers food safety, hazard identification, product quality, OH&S and ethics
Click here [ for information on pesticides and strawberries ]