Chia offers healthy returns back to the grower
12/9/2017
Founder and Managing Director of the Chia Co John Foss relates the excitement around his switch from growing wheat to launching his own worldwide superfood venture twenty years ago.
Founder and Managing Director of the Chia Co John Foss recalled the excitement around his switch from growing wheat to launching his own worldwide superfood venture.The former Bruce Rock farmer was one of a bunch of guests that spoke at the Grower Group Alliance meeting, in which he talked about his 16 year transition from growing wheat at Bruce Rock to eventually becoming the no 1 global distributor of Chia seeds.
Mr Foss explained that his sudden transition into the health food field was a result of participating in year-long worldwide tour within the framework of his Nuffield Scholarship.
This was the moment where he realised the potential of chia, which wasn’t so popular back then but now is globally renowned for its protein and omega 3 content.
He said that upon his return, he was sure that health and well-being sector was something that he wanted to concentrate on, either through his own farm or beyond that.
Simultaneously, he really saw the contribution of water supply as a means to produce food and wished to get a touch-point in irrigated agri business. He also spoke of his willingness to collaborate with supply chains as a key factor in his sucess.
He realised that health foods industry had great future potential and the rapid pace of modern living together, with an interest in health and nutrition, had altered consumer choices. He met with Kununurra Ord Valley farmers to secure an irrigated farm property which stretches 15 degrees south of the equator, and is probably the greatest spot to grow the seed.
During the mid-2000s, the initial trial units of Ord Valley chia were collected, currently there are many farmers that grow 100s of hectares of chia seeds annually.
The consumer demand for high nutrient vegetarian-based foods is obvious if you take a closer look at modern food trends, Mr Foss commented.
He added that there is an entire ecosystem behind this plant-oriented venture, getting involved with the vegetarian movement was a key to chia's success.
Next year the annual worldwide consumption of chia seeds is forecasted to rise to 65 billion tonnes, and within the next decade it will probably rise to 100 billion tonnes.
While some statistic experts forecast that North American will still have the biggest share in global chia seed production, he is confident that the crop will continue to thrive in the Ord Valley.
The previous year, he, along with a team of Ord Valley growers created the Northern Australia Crop Research Alliance, which was granted $500,000 State Government grant to support crop growth in the area.
The team anticipates that through this work, it would be possible to 4x the farm-gate values in the Ord within the next 3 years.
Mr Foss came back to Western Australia this year after he moved with his family to New York in 2012 for marketing purposes
