Small berry farm focuses on quality

Rachel de Wit and Steve Clements, of Aviemore Blueberry and Cherry Farm, have put quantity on the backburner to produce the highest quality berries possible at their two-hectare property at Gravelly Beach.

For more than two decades, the duo has dealt with the unpredictability that is Tasmanian weather and accepted that, when it comes to mother nature, farmers simply must adapt.

"We've been here 20 years now and there's always something different," Ms de Wit said.

Although Tasmania now has several 20-hectare-plus farms, Aviemore Blueberry and Cherry Farm continues to excel, despite industry pressures to expand.

"It's get big or get out," Mr Clements said, adding that the family-owned farm held its own just fine.

"We know we're better than them. What we are producing is better quality and we have a capacity to be more selective about what we do."

Accordingly, in any trade with so many uncertainties, one consistency remains in the work Ms de Wit and Mr Clements do, and that is the emphasis they place on care - from the berries they produce to the people who pick them.

"The grading of the berries is done by humans, so you keep your standards up," Ms de Wit said.

"When people are with us, it's an extended family group - they're not a number."

Aviemore sells to local grocers and is open to the public at 403 Gravelly Beach Road, Gravelly Beach.