Seed funding for youth bushfood catering business

A new Aboriginal commercial catering venture in the Bega Valley in NSW will teach young Indigenous people to grow native plants, cook with them, and supply delicious bush tucker to corporate catering clients and local tourism operators.

The Bega Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC) has received $231,000 from the Government to establish the bushfoods business using produce from its nursery and supplying product to its mobile youth catering service based out of Tathra.

The funding is part of the Government’s plan to supports Aboriginal businesses to develop new commercial opportunities that strengthen local economies and create jobs.

Program participant Kyra Kelly said the program would enable her to grow technical skills in hospitality and learn how a commercial catering enterprise is established from the ground up.

“This opportunity will be a valuable learning opportunity that will enable me to think more broadly about my future career and maybe even one day I can start up my own business,” she said.

The Katt-Hoo youth training café and Catering is part of the Bega LALC youth programs, providing young Indigenous people with opportunities to develop hospitality skills in a supportive environment.

Entrepreneurial skills

Bega LALC CEO, Leanne Atkinson said the project would help us build a flexible and skilled workforce who can share bush tucker and culture with the wider community.

“Local young Aboriginal people will learn to grow native plants, cook with them, and supply the end product to our mobile café, corporate catering clients and local tourism operators where they can share the stories behind the ingredients,” she said.

“Alongside horticulture and hospitality skills, they’ll build confidence, teamwork and entrepreneurial skills that may lead to them establishing their own enterprise in the future.”

The funding will help support the development of a commercial kitchen, including purchasing essential equipment, for hiring mentors and coaches, and for a new delivery van.

As well as giving young Aboriginal people the opportunity to learn how to grow, harvest and prepare native plants for use in cooking, the project will also teach them about circular systems that reduce waste and return nutrients back to Country through composting.

Pathways to empower young people

“This initiative is a powerful example of the great outcomes that can be achieved when Aboriginal entrepreneurship. culture and leadership are supported,” Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Treaty David Harris said.

“By combining cultural knowledge with practical training and hands‑on experience, the Bega LALC is creating pathways that will empower young people for years to come.

The initiative will play an important role in opening long-term employment pathways for young Aboriginal people in the Bega Valley, where, according to Census data, the average age of Aboriginal people is 22 compared to 52 across the broader community.

The initiative currently supports several young people, including a nursery worker, four baristas and catering staff and two young mums leading the catering team.

Additional young people are being invited to undertake work experience, gaining introductory skills in operations, marketing and social media.

The project will also enable the passing on of cultural knowledge and learnings from Aboriginal Elders and community to youth within the region.

The project has received support through the Aboriginal Economic Development Package, funded under the Minns Government’s $400 million Regional Development Trust.

For more information, go to: nsw.gov.au/regionaldevelopmenttrust