Both farmers and consumers need to be more informed about where their food comes from and how it was produced.
That was the take home message from food identity Maggie Beer who spoke at the National Rural Women's Conference dinner in Canberra on Tuesday night.
Pictured are Cheryl Pope, NSW Department of Primary industries, Orange; Natalie Bramble, Dubbo; Mary Brell, Keys to Success, Orange, and Pip Job, Little River Landcare, Orange. Click on this image to see more photos in our online gallery.
"We need to be asking ourselves what food is on our plate, was it farmed sustainably and is it Australian," she said.
"The luck of my life was leaving Sydney and meeting a boy from Mallala (in South Australia).
"What the Barossa has given me is an understanding of what comes from the earth, the flavours of the seasons and how valuable it is."
Maggie said that not enough Australians gave thought to where their food came from.
"City people won't ever understand what it is to pick a ripe juicy peach from the tree," she said.
"We live in a global market where local farmers can't compete with imported products when it comes to labour costs.
"We need to make the most of our produce and value add it."
Also, she said there was a need for growers to share every bit of information they had.
The celebrity chef and restaurateur pointed to seasonal produce in particular which needed to be promoted and protected.
"You can't be excited about seasonal food, like asparagus, if it's available all the time," she said.
"From my time in Italy, I learnt that whatever was in season and on your doorstep was more expensive; farmers shouldn't be afraid of putting a price on their produce.
"We're paying not only for freshness, but also more nutritious food."
The rise of farmers markets in the last 10 years has been the "best revolution we've seen", according to Maggie, because it put consumers in touch with farmers at a grass roots level.
"We have a young food culture, but we need a strong food culture."
