A VEGETABLE grower has turned to an honesty system to encourage people to support Colac district producers in favour of supermarkets.

Yeo’s Foothill Organics owner Joe Sgro has set up a roadside stall, with an honesty box, at the front of his Oakleys Road property to provide direct sales and rebuild the profile of Colac district producers.

Mr Sgro, whose family has grown vegetables in the Colac district for almost 70 years, said Colac district people were favouring the convenience of imported supermarket produce.

He said the shunning of Colac district producers had worsened since supermarket giant Coles slashed 50 per cent off fruit and vegetable prices in January, creating a price war with Woolworths.

“The thing that is amazing about all these vegetables grown locally, is that no one in Colac eats them,” Mr Sgro said.

“We are sure there are people around Colac who would like to eat food the way it used to be, food that doesn’t give their children allergies,” he said.

Mr Sgro’s organic farm just outside Colac produces 15 lines of National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia-certified vegetables including spinach, beetroot, turnips and red radish.

He said Colac people didn’t have to look far to find cheap, fresh and healthy food.

“You would be pleasantly surprised at how cheap organic vegetables are if you buy them from the grower,” Mr Sgro said.

“Grown in local dirt, with local rain water, local labour and all money earned spent locally,” he said.

“This is a good opportunity to see what people can do with a grower that can sell produce right at the doorstep, and cheaper.”