Grown Not Flown’s online market place helps small scale local growers connect to buyers

Many small scale local growers and micro farmers do not produce enough to go into wholesale markets, meaning it can be a tricky business finding consumers to buy their products.

A start-up, originally created for flower farmers, has made steps to fix this problem by providing a world-wide online directory and marketplace that brings consumers and local growers together.

Grown Not Flown recently attended Asia-Pacific’s biggest agri-food event, evokeAg, to showcase the innovative app helping out micro and small scale growers across Australia.

GNF founder and 2023 national rural women’s award winner Nikki Davey said the home grown passion project was born out of a need to help small scale growers get their business out in the open and available through technology.

“As relatively new flower farmers, we found there was no accessible technologies dedicated to assisting micro and small scale flower farmers like ourselves,” she said.

“So, we built what we wished was available when we first started flower farming. It’s all about supporting the micro and small scale growers and making it possible to streamline the farming operations to easily connect with consumers.”

Ms Davey said GNF was also created to provide buyers healthy, locally sourced products, especially flowers.

She cited how around half of the seasonal blooms sold in Australia were actually sourced from overseas.

“When flowers are imported, they go through Australia’s strict biosecurity regulations, and some of these flowers are treated with really harsh chemicals,” she said.

“But, when you buy local you’re usually going to get a much higher quality flower then something that’s travelled long distances.”

Ms Davey said sourcing local products also allowed consumers to have peace of mind knowing exactly where their product had come from.

“A lot of these micro and small scale growers in particular use regenerative, chemical free and pesticide free practices,” she said.

“A part of what we’re doing is looking to create that level of transparency so when you are buying from a farmer, you know the seed to stem to store life as well.”

Ms Davey said because of the nature of micro farming, there can be an inconsistent supply of product and small yields, especially with growers who are only just starting out and trying to get established.

She said because of this, it was important for growers to be given flexibility based on availability, something wholesale markets couldn’t always provide.

“We wanted to create a digital or online platform to make it easier for (growers) to be able to sell and in whichever way they want to sell, whether it be roadside stalls, farm gates or direct to consumers,” Ms Davey said.

Growers anywhere in Australia can sign up for free via the GNF website to create an online shop and seller account.