This article was sourced from ABC News

Father-and-son winemakers, Richard and Sam Statham, have built a permaculture paradise to share the burdens of managing a property.

Key points:

  • Twenty-two people, on a dozen plots, live on the 140-hectare farm near Canowindra
  • Rivers Road Organic Farms is a hybrid between a farming community and a strata title scheme
  • The farm operates on organic principles, producing wine grapes, sheep, figs, and olives

The idea began in 2000, when Mr Statham senior left the wool industry for wine grapes and, in place of investors for the vineyard, his son came up with the idea of a strata title model of organic farming.

Now, the 140-hectare multiple-occupancy farm at Canowindra, New South Wales, is home to 22 people on a dozen plots united by an organic covenant and a commitment to developing their own agribusinesses.

Rivers Road Organic Farms was set up as a “hybrid” between farming community lifestyle blocks and a standard strata title scheme, sharing skills and resources — without a formal business structure.

Each producer owns their piece of land and their own home, but they’ve all got company, expertise and any equipment they need nearby.