This weekends clash between the CA Brumbies and the Waratahs looks to be a mouth-watering encounter. Both teams have nine points from three matches with two wins apiece. Add to the mix the traditional rivalry of these two teams and you have an encounter to savour.
The Waratahs are looking much stronger than last season and have hit the ground running. Lawrie Fisher is fielding a young side who have shown already that they have what it takes.
The clash takes place at the Sydney Football Stadium @ 7:40pm on Friday 7th March 2008. Tickets available from www.ticketek.com
Professor John Guillebaud, University College, London
One of the world’s leading experts on family planning and environmental sustainability, Professor John Guillebaud of University College in London will deliver the keynote address to a major conference in Canberra in March.
But the professor will still be in England.
Professor Guillebaud will be speaking from Oxford through a video link with Rydges Lakeside Hotel where the conference is being held. The several hundred delegates to the conference will see and hear Professor Guillebaud in real time, and will be able to ask questions and take part in discussion with him at the close of his address.
Professor Guillebaud says that, while he is an enthusiastic participant in the conference, he could not justify the flight to Australia. “Every long distance flight is seriously destructive of the world’s atmosphere,” he says. “As a matter of urgency, we must limit flying to essential business only – and with modern communications it’s a simple matter for a virtual ‘me’ to attend a conference anywhere in the world.”
Professor Guillebaud – who rides a bicycle as a matter of course – says that he has been a life-time campaigner for not damaging the environment. “As a doctor there can be no more appropriate medical specialty than Family Planning: to minimise the relentless increase worldwide in the number of environment-damagers (ie humans),” he says.
Professor Guillebaud was a leading contributor to the recent Inquiry by the UK Parliament into "Population Growth: its impact on the Millennium Development Goals".
He will be one of a number of local and overseas speakers at the major international conference"Population, Peak Oil, Climate Change: their impact on the Millennium Development Goals" 14-15 March 2008 at Rydges Lakeside Hotel, Canberra, organised by Sustainable Population Australia.
Anyone interested in registering for the conference can download the conference brochure at www.population.org.au/events or call conference organiser Jenny Goldie on 02 6235 5488.
Almost everyone today accepts that human activities are having an effect on our small and finite planet. Professor Will Steffen has the sort of mind which isn’t satisfied to accept a proposition: he wants to know more. How much? When? What can we do to improve the situation?
Will Steffen is Director of the Fenner School of Environment and Society at the ANU, and he is one of the astonishing gathering of speakers at Canberra’s Rydges Lakeside Hotel on March 14-15 for a public conference organised by Sustainable Population Australia (SPA).
Australia is one of 189 countries to sign the United Nations Millennium Development Goals in 2000. The eight goals include eradication of poverty, universal primary education, improvement of maternal health, and ensuring environmental sustainability – all to be achieved by the year 2015.
A report in 2007 to the British Parliament concluded that there was little hope of reaching the goals. The report says: “The MDGs failed to take into account the population growth factor. This has significant negative effects on socio-economic development, human health, regional stability and the environment.”
Professor Steffen says that climate change is now accepted as a fact, and the important questions are what effects it will have on our way of life, and what can we do to lessen these effects.
“Sea level rise may be a matter of metres not centimetres,” he says. “Acid seas will be hostile to all the creatures who use calcium – shellfish, sponges, millions of micro-organisms. Extreme events, such as floods and droughts, will become more frequent and more severe. Cyclones will increase in ferocity. Rising fuel prices will cripple world transport.
“In this context, achieving the Millennium goals is not just socially necessary, it becomes critical to human survival that we reduce our impact on global resources,” says Professor Steffen.
The conference will focus on environmental sustainability, health, climate change and peak oil, with speakers from Australia and overseas from many disciplines. The final session, with Anglican Bishop George Browning, Catholic historian Dr Paul Collins, and Buddhist environmentalist Dr Colin Butler, will look at the ethical and moral dilemmas faced by all of us in a threatened world.
Organisers say that the SPA Millennium Development Goals conference is not scientific or technical. Anyone interested in registering can download the conference brochure at www.population.org.au/events or call conference organiser Jenny Goldie on 02 6235 5488.
Hello … did you miss me last week? … I was at Cobargo and it was GREAT!… didn’t want to come home… many, many special moments… Their organising committee have a little gem in that festival and I can see it being a "must do" for some years to come.
INDEX
1. This Week in Folkus
2. Next Week in Folkus
3. Parish Notices
4. The Comics
5. Sport
1. This Week In Folkus –
THREE BIG SHOWS @ The Folkus Room, SATURDAY, TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY….
(operates out of The Serbian Cultural Centre & Club) 5 Heard St. MAWSON ACT .. eastern side of Southlands Centre and just off Athllon Drive..
there are not enough words to describe these doyens of their chosen musical fields and styles… Just Google and go to their web pages if you want to find out more about them before getting along to The Folkus Room for one of the best weeks of entertainment of the year thus far
Saturday 1 March … Hans Theessink + Ami Williamson
Tuesday 4 March … Danny O’Keefe + Kristina Olsen & Pete Grayling
Wednesday 5 March 2008 … Martin Hayes & Dennis Cahill
2.
Next Week In Folkus … Three more big shows
Friday 7 March … Guy Davis (USA); Craig & Simone
Saturday 8 March … SONiA (USA); Rachael Cooper
Sunday 9 March … George Papavgeris (UK); The Cashews
3. Parish Notices……..
3a. The Folkus Room is offering annual subscriptions. Check out our web site for details www.thefolkus.org.au
3b. CORINBANK …. a stellar line-up of folk talent, with particular attention given to supporting local musicians. Our bill includes: Madviolet, Kate Fagan, Jackie Marshall, Lucie Thorne, Heath Cullen, The Cashews, The Andi and George band, Jessica Paige, the Lawnmowers, Dahahoo, the Crooked Fiddle Band, Rafe Morris, The Fuelers, Xavier Rudd and much much more.
3c. Advertise here .. cheap rates apply
3d. The notice with depth C21…. Advertise here .. cheap rates apply
3e. The 4th National Australian Folklore Conference will be held at The National Library of Australia on the Thursday preceding the National Folk Festival and promises an interesting mix of speakers and themes. The conference is free and is a great opportunity to listen, contribute and have a yarn about folklore in Australia. For further information please contact Graham Seal at [email protected] or Rob Willis at [email protected] ………..
4.
A woman and a baby were in the doctor’s examining room, waiting for the doctor to come in for the baby’s first exam. The doctor arrived, and examined the baby, checked his weight, and being a little concerned, asked if the baby was breast-fed or bottle-fed. "Breast-fed," she replied. "Well, strip down to your waist," the doctor ordered. She did. He pinched her nipples, pressed, kneaded, and rubbed both breasts for a while in a very professional and detailed examination. Motioning to her to get dressed, the doctor said, "No wonder this baby is underweight. You don’t have any milk." I know," she said, "I’m his Grandma,… …but I’m glad I came."
Water Lilies
If you have forgotten water lilies floating
On a dark lake among mountains in the afternoon shade,
If you have forgotten their wet, sleepy fragrance,
Then you can return and not be afraid.
But if you remember, then turn away forever
To the plains and the prairies where pools are far apart,
There you will not come at dusk on closing water lilies,
And the shadow of mountains will not fall on your heart. Sara Teasdale
back to the top
Stay Well & Truly Silly Gentle Folk
Bill Arnett
The Folkus Room
Canberra’s Acoustic Preference
61-2-62627265
0407 434 469
"No Strangers Come Here – Just Friends We Have Not Yet Met"
The Smith Family’s annual Government House Open Day will take place on Sunday 2nd March 2008. Running from 10am – 4pm this is a great opportunity to see beyond the gates of an Australian institution. Enjoy live entertainment from Hayley Jensen (Australian Idol Finalist), the National Capital Orchestra, DJ & The KarismaKatz.
In addition there will be 200 + local artworks on display. Bring a picnic and enjoy face painting, the dunking machine, Kenny Koala, the AFP Mounted Police and much more.
Entry is $8 for Adults, $5 for concession and $15 for a family pass. Call 02-9085-7116 or visit www.thesmithfamily.com.au or www.gg.gov.au for more details
There’s a genre of movies that I wish DVD stores would devote a shelf to, maybe in between drama and horror, because that’s what it’s like trying to get through a confusing movie.
You might know what I mean – any film that has more questions than credits and merits some kind of warning like “Only watch this if have some basic understanding of the Middle East peace process.”
So, why do confusing movies exist, what is their place in cinema, and how can the audience enjoy them?
+++What is a confusing movie?+++
You know you’re watching a confusing movie when your mind is scurrying about with more questions than a Trivial Pursuit deck. Like, ‘why did that happen?’, or ‘I must be so dumb arggggh I’m not getting this!’ Memories of high school aptitude tests return – except you can’t just colour in ‘ABBA ACDC’ for the entire film.
+++What’s so confusing?+++
Mind messiness can be caused by one or both markers of such movies: what it looks like and what it’s about; direction and plot.
If directors and editors opt for techniques such as split screens (Kill Bill) shaky cameramen (Bourne Identity) and subliminal cut shots (Fight Club), then it’s brain overload, given that we’re typically only used to anything as flashy as Cameron Diaz’s white-as-light smile. Directors like to tease with false hints, like leaving the camera on a piece of paper for too long, or slipping in a crescendo of ooh-ah music.
As for plot, when the characters all look the same or talk the same, they become ‘that guy with the bad moustache’ (CIA dude in Charlie Wilson’s War) or ‘Leonardo di Caprio’ (The Departed). That’s even if you can understand what the actors are saying with their patois of potty pommy such as in Snatch.
Witty scriptwriters flex their knuckles with glee when writing any script with time-shifting and flashbacks. The audience is left to function on a Friday night’s worth of brainpower to determine when the hell they are, let alone what is going on (Memento, 12 Monkeys).
+++Why do confusing movies exist?+++
So then, if the audience folds origami frowns in foreheads, why do studios produce confusing movies? Because it makes the film seem arty – “Oh well, it must be a good film because it was on so much a higher level.” However, just because something seems smarty-pants does not make it entertaining.
+++Confounding can be astounding…+++
All that intense thinking needed for confusing movies though can be entertainment – anything you have to watch more than once to understand is like hiring two DVDs. Plus, there’s the smug feeling of “Oh of course it’s so obvious now.” Who remembers watching The Sixth Sense the second time and seeing how it was all done? Pretty clever hey. And Fight Club – well, if you weren’t offended you’d be commending how the script, editing and direction all came together.
+++But perplexing is too vexing+++
What happens though when the tricky elements don’t come together? Unless you’re watching Inconvenient Truth for education, or a WWF Smackdown ‘documentary’ for post-lobotomy recovery, most films fall into that happy medium of entertainment to keep one occupied for a couple of hours. What a confusing film does to upset this aim is to spark arguments and popcorn fights when the less clever/awake moviegoers forego cinema etiquette and rasp out too many ‘who was that’s’ and ‘I don’t get it’s’.
And, just as Dada artist Duchamp rotated a urinal 90 degrees and called it art, some films are just as much a joke – and just as much piss-takers. Producers know the plot is dodgy, so they make it look arty to draw in crowds.
+++How to enjoy a confusing movie+++
Until such time as the Office of Film and Literature Classification runs a statement of ‘Warning, may cause wrinkles’, what is the humble moviegoer to do to ensure they understand what’s going on?
1. —Read the reviews first. If words such as ‘artful’, ‘complex’ and ‘confounding’ crop up, prepare yourself by watching the trailer on the internet. You may even need to read Homer’s Greek epic ‘The Odyssey’ before seeing George Clooney in ‘O Brother Where Art Thou’ to get more from it. And for Georgy boy again, read several issues of The Economist to understand what he’s up to in Syriana.
2. —Stay awake. Do not drink red wine before seeing such a film. Go with caffeine, but not too much to need a trip to the loo in those crucial scenes.
3. —Damage control. If you’re in the cinema wondering why some guy went into a hotel room and whether the scene is in the past, present or future, then keep quiet. Even if everyone else is stirring their grey matter into a tangle, imagine if they all started whispering “who was that” or “why did he do that”. You’d then miss the next line, protracting into an echo of “what did he just say?” Remember, there’s no rewind button between choctops and super soppa sodas.
4. —Recover. Just get it out on DVD and hope that dinner parties for the next three months don’t involve any intense conversations about how extraordinarily delightful that eight Oscar-nominated film is.
+++Studios should shape up+++
Perhaps the studios would make more money if people weren’t so intimidated by confusing films – it is possible to get the balance right. So I plead to the honchos of Hollywood to consider some factors in their confusing films. Give your characters names that are distinguishable and memorable. If you must tell a story that requires watching SBS news every night, just pass it off as ‘based on true events’ and leave it at that – or do a Star Wars style text intro. Keep the fancy editing to a minimum and please, if you’re going to use accents (The Wind That Shakes the Barley), shout us all a Guinness beforehand so we can get native.
Next time you’re thinking about what kind of movie to see, consider something a little more engaging than a chick-flick or action blockbuster. Confusing movies needn’t be a drama or horror story for audiences; by knowing how to follow a convoluted plot, excellent entertainment value is possible.
We have recently been informed of concerns by the government about the homeless, aboriginal welfare and of the necessity to increase the time young people will be spending at school. It is these issues which relate to what I would call our ‘welfare culture’. By this I mean those children who grow up in families or communities where possibly up to three generations have depended on welfare because they cannot support themselves through work. Unfortunately, these persons, regardless of race tend to come from lower socio-economic areas.
Our sense of accountability and auditing really works against resolving such inequalities. Inevitably, to fully address these issues, requires the utilisation of resources far in excess of similar intervention for the rest of our society. Today our democratic and bureaucratic structures struggle with such imbalances in a world of anti-discrimination.
Since 1967 we as a community have ‘thrown’ money at Aboriginal settlements but has it helped? As a community we should be sorry for the past injustices, however, will compensation really help to overcome these past wrongs? Equally, when you understand that 75% of homeless people in Sydney have psychiatric problems, will building more places for them to hide really help? All too often so many people end up in jail with psychiatric illnesses because they can’t manage their conditions without support. Building more public housing is good but will this really address the issue?
Jesus Christ lived, walked, healed and taught among the dispossessed in his society. So we need to work with people as they are, by addressing their special needs. We can’t break the cycle of ostracising generations from the education system and it certainly is not going to be solved by lengthening the period at school. While It is true that those with minimal education are almost unemployable within our society, this has created other problems. We need special schools and gifted teachers who are skilled in breaking this cycle. How do we get these assets to the right areas in today’s world? In the past, teachers could get accelerated promotion by serving in the country and this meant outback schools were well served by very good teachers. All these good structural arrangements came to naught with the Anti-Discrimination Legislation and now these people will not ‘go country’ fearing that when their children need higher education they may not be able to obtain a position back in a large city.
We need to inject resources not by some standard into these areas but by their desperate needs. We must be driven by the sense of fairness of results not the fairness of resources. We have to be driven by needs and not by statistics of the number of houses built.
To solve any of these problems requires further analysis of the causes, how culture may be changed and how in the end new futures can be built for such people. This must not be done for them, instead they must be given help to help themselves achieve their goals. This will be neither easy or straightforward. While mistakes will be made we need to be there to support them as they work their way through all the traps of our modern society. My great fear is that we always look for the easy solutions which look good rather than the means by which we truly can help these people to help themselves as was done in the past. We really need new approaches which value and respect the people rather than to see them as the flotsam of our world.
So we wait and see if this Commonwealth can overcome the resistance of the system and really help all these people.
Adrian Van Ash
Minister
Scots Church, Sydney.
"There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened." – Douglas Adams.
"I’m astounded by people who want to `know’ the universe when it’s hard enough to find your way around Chinatown." – Woody Allen.
"Duct tape is like the Force. It has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the universe together…." – Carl Zwanzig.
"Computer programming is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the universe is winning." – Rich Cook.
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." – Bill Watterson
Hollywood never had it so right – there’s no place like home. Instead of a quaint Kansas cottage though, if I clicked my ruby slippers, I end up in the shoebox they came from. Living in an apartment can still be a home though – albeit with good and bad experiences. With a few tips, anyone living in close quarters can survive and thrive.
A home is more than just a place to sleep – it is a retreat to leave toothpaste uncapped, and fridge doors plastered with whacky magnets. The ability to relax in peace is why having a home is so important – whether it be a caravan, a typical house, or an apartment. The difference lies in how does each mode of abode affect sanity and relationships.
Even if you’ve never lived in an apartment and never will, it’s interesting to know how to handle being in small spaces with other people, such as when on a camping holiday, or squashed in between strangers on an aircraft.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) conducted a survey in 2003-4 that listed 76% of Australian households are houses with three or more bedrooms on separate land, leaving 11% of the 7.7 million dwellings as apartments. Units or flats can vary in size, and for this article, when I talk of apartments, I do not mean penthouses like in Homes of the Rich and Famous with their three floors each with a butler and gilt caged elevator. No, I speak of buildings somewhere in between the dreary Soviet apartment blocks and those ritzy doormenned supermodel lofts – limited privacy, limited space and no garden.
So why do people live in apartments? There are two reasons; lifestyle choice and financial constraints.
Those who live in apartments by choice are like people that buy sports cars: it’s for lifestyle not practicality. And just as hard to fit a set of golf clubs into. Apartments are located in high-density areas, offering nightlife and proximity to work and transport. The other reason why people live in apartments is money, or lack thereof. Unlike Europe, Australia has plenty of land to clutter up with giant houses. But to afford a house in an area where take-away meals are more than just cardboard boxes – and I don’t mean the packaging – one needs the bank balance of an escaped rogue trader. Having a double income isn’t necessarily a help either. The ABS states that an average of 2.51 people live in a household – creating a frisson of friction when a romantic element is involved.
There are difficulties in maintaining sanity and relationships no matter the circumstances of apartment living – it’s not all martinis in dressing gowns and top-hatted doormen – the reality is a shoebox of sardines, lives and stuff crammed into a tiny space like excited TNT molecules in a test tube. The results can be just as explosive. Ever wonder why Big Brother has a massive studio house? That’s because if the contestants were all in an apartment, the series would last a week before they killed each other in a frenzy of crazed angst.
Close proximity to other people affects all senses; you see more, smell more, hear more, and bump into each other or table corners. Mystery is the ingredient to relationships as is vanilla to ice-cream. Proximity living means no mystery; you hear every expulsion of air from any possible orifice from one’s beloved. That’s why movie stars need mansions in Beverly Hills. Because they need to keep up the mystery that yes, even Brad Pitt suffers the effects of a double garlic and onion shwarma.
Even ignoring the shudder-inducing irritations, there’s always the day-to-day impracticalities of apartments; similar to trying to play beach cricket in the space shuttle. Inviting heaps of people over for parties threatens to cause structural damage to the balcony not even big enough to swing a cat. Walls are chock full of bookcases, shoe racks, cabinets, cupboards, or shelves. Doing laundry becomes a logistical planning activity resembling a Beijing back alley; hanging sheets over chairs and the television. Which, if you can’t see, you might be able to hear nextdoor’s DVD collection of Dad’s Army or a stereo output of Johnny Cash. Meeting them in person (the neighbours, not Johnny) there’s always the awkward side glances in the lift as you comment about the flickering light and avoid the issue of overhearing last night’s loud domestic squabble. To escape the tirade, a long poke around at the potplants on the balcony was required, deluding yourself that the corn might grow, and there might be enough for one meal. In the distance there lies the greenery of the home-owners and their laden lemon tree, envying the gin and tonics they would have on their spacious balcony.
That said, the grass is always green when there’s grass. Having an apartment has advantages – no hayfever-inducing lawn-mowing or fingernail-staining weeding. Just pay the body corporate every quarter and some other sucker prunes the rosebushes that double as a burglar deterrent.
For the most part, apartments are also more secure – it’s a lot harder to break into a window when falling involves concrete and multiple fractures. Deciding to redecorate an apartment might only take a splash of paint on a feature wall and voila, you’ve gone from French Provincial to Warhol Modernista.
Whether you’re in for the long haul or just biding time until housing prices fall (hah!), how do you survive apartment living to keep sanity and relationships intact?
—Sardine Survival —
+++Saving Sanity:
Tips to make the most of your surrounds with efficiency
-Storage: getting stuff out of the way means less things on which to bruise shins. Swedish home décor company Ikea has a great range of utilitarian shelving to store all that random stuff.
-Downsizing: unless your wardrobe has a slip lane into Narnia, consider what you really need in an apartment. The whipper-snipper you bought using American Express points last year will only become useful for trimming ear airs because that’s how old you’ll be before being able to afford anything with a hedge.
-Rationalising. Just because you like a vase/picture/book/clock doesn’t mean you should buy it. It’s not like there are walls to hang it on anyway.
-Practicalities: Laundry: do smaller loads and use an indoor drying rack. The TV antenna can only hold so many pairs of socks.
+++Rescuing Relationships:
Tips to interact with others, and maintain romance with your partner
-Personal Space: keep the peace with space, whether it be an afternoon alone, or an escape room to shut out the blarings of the Simpsons. Take up a hobby – separately.
-Romance: just because you’re at home, some basic personal hygiene considerations still apply, such as shaving legs in another room, shutting the door to pee, and limiting garlic intake.
-Neighbours: Don’t make friends and don’t make enemies. A simple hello in the lift is enough for them to think you’re a nice enough person to spare late night party noise.
-Friends: only invite as many people as you have chairs.
Living the high life in a high rise needn’t be a low down. Apartments can be just as homely as a house, without all the hassle. With a few considerations and ingenuity, clicking those ruby slippers will still bring you home.
In 2008, National Playgroup Week runs from Sunday 27 April to Saturday 3 May. World’s Biggest Playgroup Day will be held on Wednesday 30 April. Tens of thousands of families around Australia are expected to join in the fun at a range of family-friendly events.
In Canberra, World’s Biggest Playgroup Day includes "Games in the Park" a fantastic free event at Black Mountain Peninsula from 10am to noon, and there will also be a display at Centro Hyperdome. The theme and key message will be “Learning through Play”.
A highlight at all the events will be a giveaway of activity scrapbooks called Vegemite Little Aussie Readers, which are aimed at promoting early literacy for ages 0 – 5. Go to a National Playgroup Week event, or visit a Tyres & More outlet, to get a copy. Find out what’s planned for National Playgroup Week 27 April – 3 May 2008 at www.playgroupaustralia.com.au or call 1800 171 882 (toll free).
With the recent success of the new Tuggeranong Indoor Community Market, the organiser has decided to continue the art and craft market on a regular basis.
This is welcome news for both buyers and sellers who appreciate the comfort that an indoor venue provides.
Tuggeranong’s newest market is held on the last Sunday of each month and is quickly becoming a popular and vibrant community market offering arts, craft, jewellery, home wares, aromatherapy, crystals, scrap-booking supplies and much more, plus the Jetty Café situated within the Community Centre is open during market hours. “We are endeavouring to showcase some of Canberra’s and especially Tuggeranong’s talent with a very niche offering of products”, said Ms Mayfield. “So whether it is handmade or manufactured, we are looking for quality not quantity".
The organiser has also set up a website to keep both buyers and sellers updated on dates, opening hours and events associated with the market. This can be accessed via www.tuggeranongindoormarket.com.au
The next Market will be held on Sunday, 24 Feb 2008 indoors at the Tuggeranong Community Centre, Cowlishaw St, Greenway, the building next door to McDonalds.
The market is open between 10am -2pm and entry is free to the public.
Visit the Market, enjoy a cuppa at the Jetty Cafe, stroll along Lake Tuggeranong and enjoy the community atmosphere.
From the unusual to the unique, there is always an impressive showcase of handmade arts and craft on display with plenty to appeal to both locals and visitors.
We are a growing community market that is always looking to expand our the range of stalls
Our next market is on Sunday February 24
Types of stalls we are looking for:
* woodtuning
* collectables
* plants
* home baking
* photography
* charties/school/sporting fundraising
* general art & craft and
* anything creative
If you are looking for somewhere to sell/promote your goods or services please contact us to find more and/or book and site
Farmers Market brings exclusive Mediterranean flavours to Canberra
Using their Mediterranean culinary expertise and impressive experience, owners of multi-award winner Pilpel Fine Foods have developed an exclusive range of exotic flavours for the Capital Region Farmers Market visitors.
Pilpel Fine Foods produces dips and soups which are gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free and contain no animal fat, preservatives, artificial colours or flavours, representing an ideal option for vegan and vegetarian people.
Pilpel Fine Foods, the Hebrew word representing the whole capsicum family, was founded in December 2004 by Israeli couple Dari and Yehiel Kaplan who came to Australia in 1989 in search of some international experience.
“My husband was a chef in a five-star hotel in Israel and wanted to become executive chef, but to do so he had to get international experience. We were both a bit young and crazy and just decided to pack our bags and come to Australia. We’ve never looked back on that decision,” Dari said.
The Kaplans had been owners of a restaurant and catering service for 15 years when they decided to start Pilpel Fine Foods in Bondi, NSW.
“The catering and restaurant market is very demanding and we needed a new adventure. Yehiel loves creating new products and so we saw a perfect niche market with dips and soups. With my graphic design background, I could create beautiful labels for our products too,” Dari said.
“We started with six dips sold in deli stores and independent supermarkets. Within nine months we had entered David Jones. We now have 13 dips in the range and we introduced soups and pesto last year,” she added.
With four kids, four employees and on average 13-hour daily shifts, the Kaplans have found time to travel to Canberra every Saturday for the past two years to sell their products at the Capital Region Farmers Market at the Exhibition Park.
“When we first started our business, some of our friends moved to Canberra and started talking so highly of Canberra people that we thought we had to try the Farmers Market,” Dari said.
“It was the best decision we made. The Farmers Market has put us on the map, so to speak. Customers saw the consistency in the quality of our products and started visiting us every weekend. We now have strong contacts and good support in Canberra,” she said.
Dari said Capital Region Farmers Market is the only market she visits with her husband who has developed a range of products exclusively for Canberra residents.
“We like having direct contact with Market customers and getting their feedback. We can understand what they want and have a much more hands-on approach on our business,” Dari said.
“Throughout the years, some of our customers have started asking for specific products and so we have developed a whole range of products strictly for the Farmers Market, which includes marinated olives, antipasto, curries, marinades and cheese spreads.
“We bring a lot of our Mediterranean background from Israel to our products whilst always keeping an Australian twist to our recipes. We use Australian produce as much as possible. This way, we’re giving back to Australian farmers and residents.
“We have formed close relationships with a lot of the customers and some of them now buy our new products without even tasting them first simply because they trust us,” she added.
The Sydney Royal Fine Food Show awarded Pilpel Fine Foods 10 medals for its dips in 2006 and medals for all its soups in 2007.
“Food experts predict that in the next few years, Australia will have the best food in the world which will be made of a combination of Mediterranean, Australian and Asian flavours. This obviously works for us,” she added.
Pilpel Fine Foods has also introduced non-vegan pesto under the brand name Darikay.
The Capital Region Farmers Market has over 100 stalls and is open every Saturday morning at the Exhibition Park (EPIC) from 8 am to 11 am.
The Farmers Market is a genuine farmers market, offering a diverse range of fresh food and agricultural produce straight from the producer to the customer. There are over 100 market stallholders each Saturday morning selling everything from fruits and vegetables to specialist organic products, meats, breads, chocolate, wine and olives.
All funds generated from the Market are fed back into regional communities and other projects chosen by the Rotary Club of Hall which founded the Market in 2004.
For more information on Capital Region Farmers Market, visit www.capitalregionfarmersmarket.com.au.
Released for Capital Region Farmers Market by Dennis Rutzou Public Relations (www.drpr.com.au)
For further information please call Kim Larochelle or Nicola Rutzou on (02) 9413 4244.
