More and more people are deliberately seeking out food grown and cooked the ‘old fashioned’ way – swapping quick and convenient for slow and local. The original ‘slow food’ terminology was coined in 1986, when Carlo Petrini from Italy created an organisation (in response to the opening of a fast food restaurant near the Spanish Steps) and it has since spread worldwide. Closer to home, businesses and growers are doing great things to give people choice when it comes to buying their food and supporting local.
Doctor Verena Raschke-Cheema, a specialised Nutritionist and Kinesiologist says “eating is not just about sustenance; it’s about connection and nourishment. Slow food reminds us to savour each bite and appreciate the journey from soil to plate.”
One such business that encapsulates the essence of this movement is Slow Dough, an artisan sourdough bakery in Kiama. Founded by Richard and Lucy King in 2023, the couple say it’s centred around the philosophy of “slowing down and bringing people together around good, wholesome food.” It was Covid-19 lockdowns that led them on this career change. Living in Melbourne at the time, Rich started making sourdough and dropping it off to friends. During this period, the couple got stuck on the south coast when Victoria closed its borders to New South Wales during the height of the pandemic – and promptly fell in love with the region. This chance of fate meant they packed up and moved to Werri Beach.
Again, the couple began making new friends by dropping off loaves of sourdough and Rich became known as the ‘bread guy’ baking from his garage. When demand outgrew the converted garage, Rich and Lucy decided to create a space for the community to meet and connect, while eating delicious homestyle goods. Slow Dough was born, focusing on using seasonal produce with a rotating weekly menu. “In addition to finding inspiration in surplus produce supplied by neighbours, customers and the community, we also source seasonal fruit from Yuri Hulak of ‘Produce from Orange’ and honey from ‘Bees R Us’ at the local Kiama Farmers Market. This market is such an asset to our community and the slow food movement. We are so lucky to be able to access such good quality and locally sourced produce each week,” says Lucy.
Supporting local growers and suppliers is an essential component of the slow food movement. Doctor Verena wholeheartedly agrees. “By supporting local farmers and choosing whole, unprocessed foods, we not only nourish our bodies but also contribute to the preservation of traditional farming practices and biodiversity.”
A producer making a buzz both locally and nationally is The Honey Thief – an innovative honey business in the Southern Highlands that combines traditional beekeeping practices with traditional slow food techniques. The honey is handmade, hand stirred, hand poured and hand labelled by a small team in Bowral. Founder Deborah McLaughlin says “our motto is conscious products for passionate people. Consumers are increasingly wanting to understand the provenance of their food and we know our customers value sustainability. Every product we offer is crafted with sustainability at its core. Before filling our very first jar of honey, we were mindful of packaging the honey in glass and offering a recycling service for our jars. We were proud to have won a Local Business Sustainability Award in 2021. Our policy instore is that all ingredients are organic and sourced locally, as it’s better for us and the bees!”
The key to The Honey Thief’s uniqueness is deliberately going down a different path when it came to their offering. “We never sought to emulate what other honey producers were doing by offering a tasting experience determined by where the bees were sourcing their nectar. Everybody knows about New Zealand’s Manuka Honey and most likely they’ll know that in Australia, the dominant species is eucalyptus – typically, when you visit a honey shop, you’ll be offered to sample their eucalyptus varieties of Red Gum, Yellow Box, Mallee or Iron Bark. In Tasmania, the dominant species is Leather Wood, and in WA, Jarrah Honey is most common. We didn’t set out to disrupt established markets, but by honing in on what we wanted to do – or rather, by minding our own beeswax, the honey alchemy kicked in,” says Deborah.
When The Honey Thief opened, they had twelve distinctly different flavours to taste. First came cinnamon flavoured honey, then chocolate, quickly followed by vanilla, coconut and orange. “Our most popular flavour is chai, which when added to hot milk is like a barista made chai latte. Our focus now is on immunity and wellbeing with our next range of honey harnessing the potent power of plants,” explains Deborah.
And next on the cards for this producer is moving into an emerging foodie hub in the Southern Highlands, with the opportunity to collaborate with other like-minded businesses championing the slow food movement. “Nothing connects a community like food, and food from your local producer is the best!” says Deborah. We couldn’t agree more!
For more information visit:
Doctor Verena – doctorverena.com
Slow Dough – slowdough.com.au
The Honey Thief – thehoneythief.com.au
The Honey Thief would like to offer Coal Coast Magazine readers a 20% discount on their delicious honey. Use the code coalcoast20 at checkout.