Avocado farming is a pillar of the Tweed economy
A pioneering Tweed family that lost its land for two decades before buying it back to establish one of Australia’s first avocado farms has put the historic property on the market.
The 39ha property at 69 Andersons Rd, Duranbah is marketed by Ray White Malan + Co. It’s the second time in more than a century the Anderson family has sold the land.
They first acquired the farm in 1905 before it was sold off, with the original owner’s son re-purchasing it in the 1950s.
69 Andersons Rd, Duranbah
Third-generation owner Graham Anderson and his father pioneered avocado farming in Australia, establishing Anderson Horticulture in 1958, which is now the nation’s largest avocado nursery.
Then aged 15, Mr Anderson left school to work with his dad.
“The farm was first owned by my grandfather in the very early 1900s and I’m told he ran a bit of cattle on it,” he said.
“He then sold it, so my dad had to buy it back a couple of decades later.
“So it’s been in the family twice, and now it’s up for sale again — perhaps one of the grandkids of the bloke who bought it off my grandfather wants to buy it,” he joked.
The property is going to auction
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Ray White marketing agent Jessica Murphy said farmland values haven’t dipped since spiking 79 per cent through the pandemic.
She said largescale agricultural and horticultural properties around the Tweed recorded a four to five percent annual increase since Covid.
“Farming profit margins can be quite good, so for the right buyer who knows how to run a commercial orchid, this is a gem,” Ms Murphy said.
In 1988, Mr Anderson was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for services to the industry, with avocado farming now a pillar of the Tweed economy.
It’s described in the listing as a rainforest asset
“When I was about 40, I planted some rainforest trees on the steeper terrain, and as it grew, the birds and insects protected the avocados so I didn’t have to use many chemicals,” he said.
“In 1978, I was granted a Churchill fellowship to study avocado growing around the world, and now we sell avocado seeds wholesale to orchards and nurseries throughout Australia.
“I still have a laboratory to develop new varieties of avocados.”
The farm goes to auction on January 31.
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