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‘Growing undercover’ with a QRIDA First Start Loan

The young couple, owners of Lower Don Organics, purchased a larger property in early 2025 with the support of a First Start Loan from the Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority (QRIDA). This move marked their transition from tree crops into full-time horticulture production.

“We used the First Start Loan to buy a second, larger property that we could grow more produce on and hopefully make our business viable in that area of land,” Jessica said.

Expanding onto larger acreage opened new opportunities for Luke and Jessica to grow their business and secure their future in farming. Today, the fields and shade houses on their property are flourishing with organic crops, including watermelons, cherry tomatoes, eggplants, beans, capsicums, and cucumbers.

“We knew that if we wanted to continue farming and make it a viable business, we needed more land.”

This property is better in a number of ways. We've got a much bigger packing shed facility, more farming land, and no [mango] trees taking up our land that we want to grow small crops on,” Jessica said. 

Beyond expanding their land holdings, the Volkers have also invested in protected cropping by setting up two shade houses filled with healthy, chemical-free produce.

Growing vegetables undercover has allowed the couple to extend their growing season by creating a cooler environment during summer, giving them a competitive edge when temperatures rise and other growers are unable to produce.

“We want to use the shade houses for the hotter part of the year where we might burn fruit. We’re hoping that will give us a longer period of growing without too much damage to our produce,” Jessica said.

Protected cropping not only helps control the climate but also minimises pests and diseases, while maximising water and fertiliser efficiency through precise irrigation systems.

Before building the shade houses and planting crops, Luke and Jessica spent considerable time crunching numbers and preparing their First Start Loan application. Luke shared that while the process was detailed, it gave him a deeper understanding of their business finances.

“For the QRIDA First Start Loan, I did most of the data entry. I was learning how much I spend on certain aspects of the farm, particularly fertiliser and T-tape.

“I definitely have been thinking a lot more about the numbers, the financial data behind everything now since doing that [the First Start Loan application],” Luke said.

Tegan McBride, QRIDA Regional Area Manager for the Central Coast and Whitsundays, spoke highly of the Volkers’ potential and QRIDA’s pride in supporting their transition into full-time primary production.

“Looking at the economies of scale on five acres, they were certain that the next step was a little bit bigger for them, trying to maximise their growing space and potential sales into bigger markets,” Tegan said.

The Volkers approached Tegan early in the application process to seek information about what they needed to apply and the eligibility criteria.

“Jess and Luke came to me quite early on, and they were looking to look at their production schedules, look at their cost of production, understand their numbers and then to be able to scale those out,” Tegan added.

QRIDA is proud to support Queensland primary producers as they start their careers in agriculture or work to boost productivity and profitability. 

To learn more visit QRIDA's First Start Loan webpage or contact your local Regional Area Manager on 1800 623 946.