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with Snack Brands 12-15
years ago,” he explains.
“That’s just grown and
grown every year since then,
until it got to the stage where
we’re only ever just processing
potatoes now.”
Hauser Farms wouldn’t be
as successful without the
assistance of backpackers at
harvest time. Along with Kerry
there are three other workers –
two full-time and one part-time
– while seven backpackers work
Rebirth of Hauser Farms:
A family legacy continues
vary. He is a self-described
“Jack-of-all-trades”, and
his jobs include planning,
harvesting, spraying, irrigating,
ground preparation and office
work. Prior to this interview,
he had spent six weeks on the
harvester as the potato season
was coming to a close.
It is clear that Kerry’s passion
for growing potatoes has paid
off, particularly after he secured
a contract with Snack Brands
in the early 2000s.
“Traditionally, we only ever
grew fresh market potatoes and
I just stumbled upon a contract
with carrots, beans, pumpkins,
lucerne and grain for rotation.
Kerry started working on the
farm when he was 15, and
has spent 37 years in the
potato industry. This long-term
commitment to the industry
is most likely due to the fact
that he didn’t envisage doing
anything else.
“I’ve always just wanted to
grow potatoes,” Kerry says.
As owner/manager of Hauser
Farms, Kerry’s day-to-day duties
K
erry Hauser was preparing
for retirement seven years
ago – the third generation potato
and vegetable grower didn’t
envisage a bright future on the
Glenore Grove farm, near Gatton
in Queensland.
However, that all changed
when his only son Lachlan,
27, made the decision to come
back and follow in his father’s
footsteps in 2009. Now,
Hauser Farms is bigger and
better than ever.
It also rejuvenated Kerry’s
enthusiasm for the farm, which
primarily grows potatoes along
HAUSER FARMS HAS BEEN PRODUCING POTATOES FOR THREE GENERATIONS, WITH
PLANS FOR A FOURTH GENERATION FAMILY MEMBER TO TAKE OVER IN THE NEAR
FUTURE. OWNER/MANAGER KERRY HAUSER SPEAKS TO MICHELLE DE’LISLE ABOUT THE
REJUVENATION OF THE BUSINESS, THE CHALLENGES HE FACES AS A GROWER AND THE
PRIDE HE TAKES IN PRODUCING QUALITY, DISEASE-FREE POTATOES.