Lessons From Hayden Marks

What was your motivation behind starting Melbourne Bush Foods?

I knew there were Native foods, but there wasn’t a huge amount of information & it was really hard to access it. For me sustainability has always been something I am very passionate about - especially the agriculture system and how can we grow enough food to sustainably feed the population. 

In Australia we grow enough food to feed over 70 million people, agriculture is inherently water intensive yet we are in a dry climate with poor soils. We should be growing our native species here which have been growing for hundreds of years to nourish and suit the climate & soil. 

I kept thinking, ‘this is really cool - but you can’t access it!’ That’s where the idea for Melbourne Bush Foods began. I launched at a market with 1 kilo of natives and it all evolved from there.

 Why do you think there is such a disconnect today from Indigenous wisdoms, land management techniques & using native plants in gardening & cooking? 

I think it's from culture being lost. Indigenous wisdom is something that is passed down from generation to generation. Now we are seeing people coming back & getting native titles again & elders are starting to re-introduce this knowledge with their communities. We are learning so much from how the land was managed through colonial accounts also which is a great resource so we aren’t basing knowledge of western approaches. 

There was no need to question the food systems we had in place with such a rise in toxic fertilisers producing crops that aren’t native successfully. It’s only now becoming apart of our knowledge due to a cultural shift in Australia where we are trying to figure out our own identity in a geopolitical space, we are looking back at our history before the 1700’s & trying to embrace that as our identity. 

From a soil health & irrigation perspective, what is the benefit of using natives as opposed to using imports? 

The best example I have is the finger lime! It’s a citrus species native to Northern NSW and it’s got these gorgeous pearl caviar pieces inside. When we think of the citrus species we are eating at the moment: lemons, limes etc & these require a huge amount of water. Finger Limes require 50% less water to grow and thrive. We are the most drought inflicted continent yet we are growing things which require huge amounts of water. 

I like to refer to the Aboriginal grain belt. If you look at contemporary models of where grain is currently grown & compare to where Aboriginal people would harvest and grow native species of grain - they were much further into the centre of Australia. They used areas that we see as dry wastelands for growing highly nutritious foods & whilst doing that creating biodiversity and replenishing the soil in the interim.

Founding a business that is based on your values where you wish to create change, but that’s also going to be profitable is a huge challenge. Our systems are not set up for having success in this way which deters companies from trying. How do you face those challenges ?

At the end of the day you have to stick with your mission. Every decision I make stems from our mission which is, ‘We are on a social crusade to put Aussie native foods into stomachs across the world.'

I have that statement pasted everywhere and it makes me think, ‘Is this working towards my goal?’ You do have competing interests when in this space, the business needs to be profitable in order to continue, yet the biggest issue is based on shareholder benefit. We put our staff, customers and suppliers first. This means we can stick to our moral compass and continue to be inspired. There’s been plenty of times where I have nearly done the wrong thing, but you learn and grow whilst following your vision. Sometimes you have to give up one value for another which may be stronger.