Frozen finger lime market cracked with grant

Green Valley Fingerlimes, a Sunshine Coast finger lime orchard that lost its export and national markets to the COVID-19 pandemic, is rebounding after receiving a $7500 grant under the Palaszczuk government’s $500,000 Market Diversification and Resilience Grant Program.

The grant will be used to buy a new blast chiller and freezer room, enabling the business to diversify from fresh only to frozen finger lime products for Australian and overseas markets.

Company Director Jade King said at least two tonnes of finger limes harvested in the current season would have been lost without the equipment to freeze the fruit. Due to the support from the Queensland Government, the company was able to consider selling frozen products to various export and national markets for the first time.

“We’ve had to turn away enquiries for frozen fruit because we could only meet fresh market demand, so the freezers will give us the opportunity to break into new markets including Japan and the United States that only accept frozen product.

“Diversifying our business operation through new product lines will make us more resilient to changing circumstances in the future,” King said.

Image credit: Green Valley Fingerlimes

“Green Valley Fingerlimes is a prime example of a Queensland agribusiness building resilience and finding opportunity from adversity,” said Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries Mark Furner.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/uckyo