Plus fine-dining triumph and celebrating rural women. Welcome to Galah Weekly, our newsy newsletter keeping you up to date with regional headlines that matter, plus other delightful things from life beyond the city. By Michelle Crawford, who is rationing olive oil and eggs.
It was a big win for regional dining this week when The Agrarian Kitchen, in the charming hamlet of New Norfolk in southern Tasmania, was named Restaurant of the Year at the Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Awards. This is the first time a Tasmanian restaurant has won the title in the award’s 45-year history.
Presenting the award, Gourmet Traveller editor Joanna Hunkin said, “The Agrarian Kitchen has followed a remarkable trajectory – from a small farm and cooking school in the Derwent Valley to what is now a global dining destination. The work Rodney and Séverine have put into transforming the property and its gardens, and establishing a truly sustainable food system, is extraordinary. Tonight’s honour recognises that thoughtfulness and commitment and is testament to the fact that good things take time.” Hear, hear!
Other regional winners were Daylesford’s Lake House voted readers’ choice icon, Maxwell in SA’s McLaren Vale taking best state restaurant, and Chauncy in Heathcote, Victoria, picking up best destination restaurant. Full story
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This week, the who’s who of Australia’s regional agricultural scene came to Parliament House to celebrate the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Awards.
Tanya Egerton was named AgriFutures Rural Woman of the Year, taking out the top gong for her Remote OpShop Project, a growing network of outback op shops across remote First Nations communities in the NT and WA.
The project supplies pre-loved, donated clothes from large urban centres to remote Indigenous communities. The communities use the clothing to set up op shops, providing locals with good quality, affordable clothing, as well as job opportunities and a revenue stream to fund local cultural projects such as art centres.
On top of the $15,000 Westpac grant already awarded to Egerton as the NT Agrifutures RWA state winner, she will receive an additional $20,000.
“With the additional $20,000 Westpac grant, we can develop a First Nations leadership council and establish a robust governance framework for the Remote Opshop Project,” Egerton said. “Our goal is to ensure high-quality, affordable essential goods are redirected from landfills and redistributed to remote communities, fostering empowerment and self-determination.”
Applications for the 2025 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award are now open. Learn more about how to apply here.
It’s been a big week for renewable projects with the announcement that Hughenden in outback Queensland will host a massive $5 billion, five gigawatt wind farm, poised to generate enough power for a city the size of Townsville. The Bogunda wind farm, planned by Renewable Energy Partners, will connect to the new CopperString transmission line linking coastal areas to mineral-rich regions. While construction is still a couple of years away, strong government backing has sparked confidence in the project. Full story
Meanwhile at the Top End, federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has approved the first stage of the Sun Cable Australia-Power Link, set to become the largest renewable energy and storage project in the world. The solar plant is near Elliott and Tennant Creek in the Barkly region, using panels prefabricated at a proposed factory in Darwin.
The solar panels will cover 12,000 hectares –12km by 10km – in an area with some of the best solar resources in the world. An 800km overhead power line will transmit 6.4 GW to Darwin, where it will transfer to a 4500km undersea power line to Singapore. This undersea cable will be the longest in the world by a long way.
There were “strict conditions to protect nature” attached to the approval, according to a statement from Plibersek, “including requirements to completely avoid important species like the Greater Bilby and critical habitat”. Full story
Retirees are flocking to regional Australia and putting up their feet, according to a recent report listing the nation’s top 30 destinations for retirement.
Top of the list are Armidale in NSW, the Qld town of Ingham, and Maryborough in Victoria. The report, compiled by AMP-backed fintech company Citro, identified retirement-friendly locations based on factors including affordability, healthcare infrastructure, community focus, and recreational opportunities for older Australians.
Citro's managing director Ash Frenken emphasised that the regional areas on the list offer more than just coastal, hinterland, or rural settings. The study also considered locations appealing to both renters and homeowners, as well as those looking to downsize or upsize their living arrangements.
The report underscores that over-50s are prioritising factors such as price, healthcare, social connections, and leisure activities when choosing where to retire. Full story.
At another stage of life, however, regional Australia doesn’t look so rosy. An estimated 700,000 Australians live in “childcare deserts” with virtually no access to childcare. According to a new study by researchers at Victoria University, nearly a quarter of Australians live in areas where there's one spot for every three or more children who need it. While the number of childcare places has increased in recent years, availability remains low in rural and regional areas.
Retirees moving to areas with childcare shortages … are you thinking what I’m thinking? Full story
In another blow to the weekly shopping budget, Australian extra virgin olive oil has hit price parity with European imports. No more bargain Spanish olive oils to be had – it’s time to buy local.
What’s behind the price shift? Australian brands are typically more expensive than imported equivalents but consecutive years of drought in Spain, the world’s largest producer of olive oil, have triggered shortages and wholesale prices have soared to world-record levels, leading to price blowouts on the supermarket shelf. With a lacklustre local harvest due to environmental factors, whether imported or local, oil prices won’t come down until next year. Full story
In last week’s Weekly and in the golden aftermath of the Olympics, we asked readers to name their medal-worthy accomplishments. It inspired this story by Galah-on-the-ground Greg Finlay.
“My rural community is Bonshaw NSW 2361. Our family farm is in the same community as the home and pecan farms of Galah’s editor-in-chief.
“Our district was drought-declared in 2012 and came out of it in May 2022, 10 years later. During that time, 2019 had an all-time record low rainfall – only 40% of the previous record low of 1923, regarded as a 1-in-800-year event.
“Our 2019 and 2020 farming years were lost to record drought. 2021 was flooded. Then 2022 flooded again. The 2023 cropping was badly affected by an abnormally severe early frost. With interest rates going up 13 times between 2022 and 2024, rural banks added an extra rise as well to maintain their margins.
“Each rural family here is like the incredible multi-medal-winning Fox family - only more cunning than a fox. We are all cunning to survive. We would not wish to be anywhere else and every family has given gold-medal performances for years. I feel I am standing on our own podium with my friends, the Hicksons – while nibbling on their pecans, sipping pecan liqueur and living our best lives.”
The Galah book tour rolls into Victoria in October. Catch editor-in-chief Annabelle Hickson at:
So far, almost 800 Galahs-on-the-ground have given feedback in our annual reader survey. Thank you, dear readers. The anonymous survey is vital to help us make Galah better, increase our impact and continue to support regional Australia - so if you haven’t had a chance to complete the survey yet, please do.
It takes just 10 minutes and, to sweeten the deal, all completed surveys will go into the running to win our virtual “lucky door” prizes, including an impossible-to-buy complete set of Galah issues 1-10 and a mega gift pack full of our favourite things. Or, if you don’t want more stuff in your life, we’ll make a donation to the Country Education Fund on your behalf. Prizes are drawn on 31 August. Complete the survey here.
This exhibition explores the work of contemporary Australian artist Brent Harris who uses both humour and the grotesque to examine psychological subjects. Art Gallery of South Australia until 20 October. Read more
In its 10th year, this festival is designed by writers for writers, boosting the creativity and skills of published and emerging regional poets, and fiction and non-fiction writers. Dubbo, NSW, 13-15 September. Read more
Along a 220km stretch of Tasmania’s east coast, this 10-day festival celebrates natural beauty and the stories of winemakers, growers, producers and the people behind this cool-climate wine region. 6-15 September. Read more
In his new book, The Bravest Scout at Gallipoli, Butta plunged into unacknowledged Anzac history, espionage, sacrifice and heroism to tell the story of a soldier named Harry Freame. He was the first Australian to die in the secret service, and some say he was denied a VC because he was half-Japanese.
How did you come across Harry?
The first words I read about him were: adventurer, soldier, orchardist and interpreter. They were enough to send me down a rabbit hole. I can now add “samurai”, “spy” and “the Kentucky Sausage King” to the list of Harry's descriptors. But initial intrigue turned to a determination to write his life story when I learned that the man who was known as the Marvel of Gallipoli in his lifetime had had his death covered up by the Australian government and that he was lying in an unmarked grave in Sydney. That didn't feel right, so I set out to make the case for Harry to be recognised for his service to his country.
How would you go surviving on the diet eaten by Australian soldiers at Gallipoli?
According to the Australian War Memorial, the soldiers ate bully beef (tinned corned beef), rice, jam, cocoa, tea, some bread and hard tack, a biscuit made of flour, sugar and powdered milk. I’m partial to tinned corned beef, but I’m not sure how I would be after eight months of it. Of course, the Australian soldiers were also receiving Anzac biscuits from home. That would help. Interestingly, the golden syrup in the Anzac biscuits, which prevents mould, allowed them to travel halfway around the world without spoiling. But, being a man of pasta, I think I may have done better fighting on the Asiago Plateau with the Italian troops during WWI.
Your bio says you believe “only by dismantling the myths of the past can we build the country of the future”. Which myth do you hope to dismantle next?
The first myth to fall is that the past is past. As William Faulkner wrote, "The past is never dead. It's not even past." When you research history you see how true this is. Myths come about to hide or subvert the truth. If we want to see reconciliation in Australia, we need to know and accept what has happened. And not just reconciliation between white Australia and Indigenous Australia, but reconciling how we as a modern society exist on this land. All of that is based on a shared acceptance of the truth.
What does the Australia of the future look like to you?
I would like us to be able to look at ourselves and honestly say that we are the country of the fair go, and for it to be true. I think that is all anybody really wants, just a fair go.
One of my favourite morning Instagram updates is by Daniel Hart, who is spreading the word about basic income support. Hart is walking the length of mainland Australia, from the southernmost point of Wilsons Prom to Cape York. That’s a staggering 4500km. Since early April he's been clocking an average of 25 kilometres a day in a $5 pair of sandals, a hat made from a pizza box and a few basic items stuffed into a small backpack.
Despite travelling light, Hart produces beautiful videos that quietly share the highlights of each day’s walk. Scenery ranges from the dazzling to the mundane, with a soundtrack of either birdsong or traffic, all underpinned by the gentle rhythm of his footsteps. It’s a soothing and inspiring way to start the day. Watch here
We’d love to hear about the news, events and people that should be making the headlines in the Galah Weekly newsy. Share what’s new(s) in your neck of the woods with us at newsie@galahpress.com
