Australian Native Fruits - A Sustainable and Resilient Food Option
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Climate change is intensifying water scarcity and extreme weather, making conventional farming more challenging.
Unlike many introduced crops, Australian native fruits (ANFs) like finger limes and Kakadu plums have adapted over millennia to thrive in the harsh climate. Their resilience to infrequent rainfall offers valuable insights for sustainable agriculture in a warming world.
Muntries, for instance, grow in the sandy soils of Portland and the Little Desert in Western Victoria – a region recently impacted by devastating bushfires.
Dr Leonie van 't Hag of Monash Chemical and Biological Engineering and her team have researched why ANFs preserve and how they’re so drought-tolerant. Their adaptability could be the key to climate-resilient farming practices.