Five years after establishing a community-driven food system in the Upper Murray, the Acres & Acres Co-op paused operations at its retail outlet in Hanson Street in Corryong in March to review the business.

Following a trial period, Acres and Acres is now operating under a new model and a new board.

“We made the decision to pause trading to assess the situation and seek new ways of creating a local sustainable food system,” said board member, Kate Wheeler.

“I hate to see empty shops, so we have worked behind the scenes to find a different way of doing business.”

“We listened to our members” added another board member, Kerry Flanagan “and we realised we needed to scale down to reduce costs.

“We are thrilled to announce that Acres & Acres is now an official partner hub in the Grow Local Food North East project – a three-and-half-year initiative funded by VicHealth, auspiced by Sustainable Table and delivered with Bright Food Co-op and Sustainable King Valley.

“This project is building a stronger regional food system across the North East and Upper Murray and it brings real benefits for our local community,” said co-op secretary, Bella Long from Walwa.

Some features of the new business model include refrigerated van deliveries bringing fresh regional produce into Corryong every week.

“The new online ordering system means reduced waste, growing only as demand grows,” Kerry said.

“The new model has already allowed us to reduce the price of many products in-store as our markups are very low.

“We’ve completed four successful test delivery runs and more producers will be joining the system soon.

“If you were a member in the past, we’d love to have you back,” urged producer and board member, Bernie Kennedy from Murmungee farm.

“Your membership keeps the co-op strong and supports affordable, fresh local food for our community.”

Acres & Acres has an online ordering system through the Open Food Network, where you can order popular items like Silver Creek sourdough products, exotic mushrooms from Markwood Mushrooms, chemical-free veggies from Lomandra and Murmungee basin farms along with a wide range of high-quality pantry items including chocolates from Dr Feelgood.

“We’re ready to respond to our community’s needs,” Kerry emphasised.

“We focus on local, pesticide-free produce, supporting small producers. For more information email kerry@acresandacres.com.au.

This article appeared in Corryong Courier, 11 December 2025.