SW group celebrates ‘sharing is caring’

A love of good conversation, good produce and food conservation have been the hallmarks of five successful years for the Manjimup Produce Swap.

The idea of the group is for people with surplus produce from gardens or groceries to be brought together, shared and swapped.

Group founder Clare Bailey said she got the idea from a gardening magazine she read in 2010 and sat on the idea for a couple of years.

“I had a persimmon tree and I needed a way to get rid of them,” she said.

“And between two people, we couldn’t eat all the cherry tomatoes that were growing.”

Mrs Bailey started by swapping produce between friends, before word spread and more people wanted to join in on the fun.

The group moved from its meeting place at Top Notch Cafe to Manjimup Gateway about three years ago.

People involved in the fortnightly group range in age from their 20s to 60s and who each bring different stories and gardening knowledge to the swap.

“I get a kick out of listening to the conversations that happen over the tables of produce,” Mrs Bailey said.

Mrs Bailey emphasised that it was not just home-grown produce that could be shared, but things like excess groceries, jars and gardening magazines.

Manjimup Produce Swap was the first of such groups to be held in the Lower South West but since its instigation, swaps have been set up in Bridgetown, Mount Barker and Denmark.

The group will meet this Sunday from 3.30pm.