GROWING TOGETHER

Native Australian ingredients are true superfoods but their greatest value, writes MAX VEENHUYZEN, is to connect us with more than 60,000 years of First Nations knowledge.

- MAX VEENHUYZEN

Within First Nations communities, there is an idea known as nypagi nypagi: a win-win situation. Nypagi nypagi beats at the heart of Red Centre Enterprises, a business established in 2014 by Jiman-Bundjalung elder Yuandamarra and his wife Nadia Kiely to help Aboriginal agribusinesses grow and flourish. This thinking doesn't just influence how the couple works with Indigenous communities: nypagi nypagi also extends to their relationships with non-Indigenous partners.

"We enter into joint ventures because they're exactly that," says Yuandamarra. "We don't run around saying we're an Aboriginal business: it's an Australian business and an Aboriginal business working together. Part of our vision statement is that we walk together on the journey. That's how you achieve the best outcomes."

Lately, the Kielys have enjoyed plenty of best outcomes, from helping bring quandong-infused sparkling red grape juice Soul Good to market, to partnering with global travel retailer Lagardère to ensure First Nations products are front and centre at Southern Providore, Adelaide Airport's new South Australian-first boutique.

In short: after patiently waiting some 60,000 years, saltbush, lemon myrtle, finger limes and the rest of Australia's native foods are finally getting their time in the sun. Or more specifically: in ice-creams, in cookies, in medicine, and in high-end restaurants (the rise of Noma and its 2016 pop-up in Sydney, it must be said, were major catalysts for the current bush food boom). But while many are drawn to these foodstuffs as a way to connect with the past, many see native ingredients as a road towards a brighter future.

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