A row over the role of farmgate stores on the Mornington Peninsula has ramifications for peri-urban councils throughout Victoria.
Under green wedge and green belt planning laws, there are tight restrictions on what farmgate stores can sell.
Planning rules state farmgate stores can only offer food produced on the land here the shop is located, from adjacent properties, or with minimal processing, such as chutneys and jam.
That's resulted in complaints to Mornington Peninsula Shire that several of the region's larger farmgate operations are breaching the strict planning provisions.
"My discussions with other peri-urban councils around Melbourne and Bendigo confirm this is not a problem unique to the Peninsula," Mornington Peninsula Agribusiness and Food Industry Facilitation officer Stephanie Delaney said.
"History has shown planning legislation needs to do more than lock up land for agriculture,
"It needs to ensure small farms on the peri-urban fringes remain viable."
She said the only way to ensue the viability of small farms was through legislative change, to allow "lateral trading" between local farmers, to offers diversity and convenience to the customer.
Several larger Mornington Peninsula farmgate stores, including Peninsula-Fresh Organics, Baxter, and Hawkes Farms, Boneo, argue that they should be allowed to supplement what they grow with off-farm produce.
They say there's been an increase in checks by Mornington Peninsula Shire Council compliance officers, after complaints from other regional farmers that their stores were breaking the green wedge planning rules.
Richard Hawkes, Hawkes Farm Boneo, said his business was one of the key farmgate stores on the Peninsula.
"Where we have got into trouble is that we have added some complementary products that customers asked for, such as sweet potatoes," Mr Hawkes said.
He said the majority of the produce sold at the shop was grown locally, but the council had received complaints about the extended offering.
"As soon as there is a written complaint, the council's compliance department has to go and act on it," he said.
"We end up getting issued with a compliance notice, saying what we are doing is outside the bounds of what we are supposed to be doing.
"If I didn't have the farmgate I would be turning off the lights; our business completely revolves around the foodservice and hospitality trade."
As a result of the closure of restaurants and cafes, he said his total farm sales had dropped by 80 per cent.
"The farmgate shop is the only bit that's keeping the home fires burning," Mr Hawkes said.
Wayne Shields, of Peninsula-Fresh Organics, said he had experienced similar issues.
"We have been told we have to cease and desist," Mr Shields said.
"We've made arrangements to fall back and sell what we grow, which I can't see as a viable option," he said.
Mornington Peninsula Shire Strategic Projects manager Allan Cowley said the issue had come into sharper focus, since the Victorian government announced a review of strategic agricultural land, around Melbourne.
"It's about whether people should be able to sell produce they don't grow, and how that can be managed?," Mr Cowley said.
"There's always the question of selling bananas from Queensland, where do you draw the line?'
Planning Minister, Richard Wynne, last year announced the government was seeking to permanently tighten controls, to better protect Melbourne's green wedges, against overdevelopment.
It called for submissions to help identify and protect the city's agricultural land.
Mr Cowley said the council was waiting on the outcome of the review.
"We have considered a range of options and had discussions with councillors about that, but we haven't taken any formal position," he said.
"We would say the provision for the sale of local farm produce is really to support agriculture, on the property, not to establish a lot of greengrocers' shops through the green wedge."
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Alternate position
Victorian Farmers Federation member and veal producer, David Gibb, Red Hill, said the key issue was protecting valuable agricultural land, from overdevelopment.
A former Mornington Peninsula mayor, Mr Gibb said shops were prohibited in the green wedge zone.
"But it's not just Mornington Peninsula; planning provisions apply to all farmland in Melbourne's interface councils, such as Yarra Ranges, Cardinia and Casey," Mr Gibb, of Sussex Farm, said.
The planning provisions also covered farming land around regional centres, such as Ballarat, Bendigo and Geelong.
"Shops are a prohibited use in a Green Wedge Zone - it's giving a competitive disadvantage to those in commercial zones and playing by the rules," he said.
"It weakens the vitality and viability of shops that stay in the commercial zones."
He said there had been strict dispensations given, when green wedges were first introduced, to allow some farmgate sales.
"It was initially intended to relate to orchards," Mr Gibb said.
"That was the genesis of it - they were allowed to put their apples out in a structure on the roadside, with an honesty box.
"It was a special concession to sell just your own produce; it was never intended to be expanded to be a shop, in a farming area."
He said he was concerned allowing farmgate shops to stock products other than what they grew or bred was the "thin end of the wedge," which would erode the availability of agricultural land.
"This other use has a greater earning capacity than the original one, which was for agriculture, and we are not making any more agricultural land."
He said primary producers could sell in local supermarkets, or at farmers markets.
"Ritchies, Dromana and General Store at Flinders are selling Mornington Peninsula branded products, seven days a week, in a commercial zone," he said.
Rule change
Mr Shields and Mr Hawke both argued for a loosening of the regulations, to allow an 80-20 mix of local produce and food brought in from outside.
They also said farmgate stores should be allowed to sell produce from other parts of the shire, grown under the Mornington Peninsula Produce (MPP) food provenance brand.
The certified trade mark, developed by the Mornington Peninsula Shire and the Food Industry Advisory Body (FIAB), indicated the provenance of fresh produce, bought from farm gates, farmers' markets and retail outlets.
The trade mark aims to strengthen the identity of the Mornington Peninsula as a quality, fresh and innovative food economy.
It provides consumers with a guarantee of authentic provenance from the Mornington Peninsula with the legal backing of the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC).
Mr Hawkes said that was part of a push, by the shire, to develop a local food network, and encourage the development of farmgate sales.
He grows potatoes, carrots, parsley, spring onions and radish on 56 hectares, but supplements those sales with other locally grown produce.
Mr Hawkes said he'd like to see his farmgate store develop as a local produce hub.
He said he paid a fair price for any produce he put in the shop, that he'd bought from local growers.
"It adds to the shopping basket.
"It lifts the whole area up.
"A blanket is only as good as the number of threads in it, the more threads you have, in terms of farmers, the better it is."
Mr Shields said the MPP brand allowed shoppers to prioritise their purchases around local produce.
Peninsula-Fresh Organics grew heirloom carrots and radish, leeks, spinach, lettuce varieties, rainbow chard and broccoli.
"The rules are out of date, and they have to change," Mr Shields said.
He said farmgate stores had been given the green light by the council's economic development department.
"We have had advice from the council's economic development department on what we can, and can't do, within the rules."
"There is such a thing as seasonality - there is only so much kale people can take, when lettuce and carrots are out of season.
"So we supplement what we can grow.
'But, at the end of the day, our money is in growing and selling our own produce."
He said bringing in produce from outside was a very small part of the business.
"It's not our core business, it's something to keep our staff and the doors open, when seasonality kicks in."
But Mr Gibb said the council had not yet taken a position on the 80-20 rule.
"It's exploring the 80-20 rule, as it's nervous about the threat of it getting away from us," he said.
"Farmgate sales are of stuff grown on the farm, there is no such thing as an ancillary product."