Pukara Estate: Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, a Skincare Range and More

Growing olives was just the start of the Goodchild family’s journey into producing extra-virgin olive oil, associated food products and even a skincare range.

For more than two decades, Steve and Racquel Goodchild have lived and breathed Pukara Estate olive oil. They moved to the Hunter Valley in NSW as newlyweds in 2000 to help the grove’s founder, Bruce Eglington, extend the plantings he’d begun the previous year and have been “working on buying the business” ever since.

They’ve been hands-on supervising the expansion of the planting of the present 200 acres (80 hectares) to 20,000 olive trees of varieties from Spain, Italy, Israel and Greece best suited for extracting oil. They’ve worked in the grove and on the packing-room floor, so it’s hardly surprising there’s not much about olives and oil that they don’t know.

“As any farmer will tell you, when you run a family business, you are always on deck,” Racquel says. “Steve and I are passionate people, we love what we do and we have great faith in our products. We are the real deal — when we sell to customers, they can be completely assured that all our oil is grown and processed to the highest possible standards. We can vouch for that because we’ve been there every step of the way. Our daughters have grown up around the business, which has given them a great lifestyle, but also involved the sacrifices that country children have to make when their parents are consumed by work, or drought or floods, or whatever challenges come our way.”

Racquel was in high school in Toowoomba when she met Steve as a young tradesman. She went on to work in insurance and, in 1996, Steve got a job at an olive tree nursery at nearby Helidon, which led to consulting work all over the country as farmers — hobbyist and career — jumped at the chance to diversify into what was then a fledgling industry in Australia. The opportunity to get in at the ground level was not lost on the Goodchilds and they jumped at the chance Bruce gave them to make their future in the industry.

As it turned out, growing and harvesting the olives was not an issue, but what to do with the oil after it had been pressed became a challenge many novice growers couldn’t overcome. Steve and Racquel were undaunted, though, and became regulars at farmers’ and growers’ markets that were springing up all across the country.

“We also recognise an opening when we see it,” Racquel says. “So we were early adopters of blending oils with natural extracts. Olive oil is a fruit juice itself so it just made sense. Oil is measured by not just quality, but also shelf life, so after harvest in April and May, we blend and bottle on demand so the oil is at its peak when we sell it and spends as little time on the shelves as possible.”

The Goodchilds then branched out with other associated products, including salt, and condiments, jams, preserves and tapenades all grown and produced in Australia. “Our olives are for oil, not the table,” Racquel explains. “So we sell table olives from growers who specialise in those varieties. Steve also diversified into making and maturing vinegars, and the Pukara Estate caramelised balsamic is one of our best-selling lines.”

The brand grew beyond the volume of weekend markets and delis, so in the past few years the Goodchilds have focused their attention on their retail outlets. These days, Pukara Estate has stores in Muswellbrook, Newcastle and Pokolbin in the Hunter Valley, a growing online presence and for many years has been exporting to the UK, New Zealand, Singapore and Japan.

In 2018, as Steve and Racquel’s daughters were growing up and becoming more independent, Racquel took the opportunity to ramp up her contribution by realising a long-term ambition to launch their own skincare range. “Olive oil is so good for you inside and out,” Racquel explains. “So it just made sense to combine it with a range of other Australian products that offer skin and wellbeing benefits to make our own lotion, balm, cream, body wash and butter. We used aloe vera as the main ingredient along with honey, beeswax, olive-leaf extract, camel milk, shea butter, Kakadu plum, all products that I believe provide benefits. We also chose frankincense and vanilla for their mild earthy aromas, which are not overpowering.”

To acknowledge the role the Goodchilds’ daughters, Georgia and Annabelle, have had in the business, the skincare range is named Earth and Grace. “Georgia means ‘a worker of the earth’ and Annabelle means ‘love and grace’,” Racquel explains. “So we put them together in the label. After all, the girls have grown up with the business, playing in the grove and helping out when it’s all hands on deck during harvest and we’re there at midnight putting olives through the press.”

While Racquel admits COVID and current world issues provide challenges from distribution and shipping delays to a forecast shortage of glass for bottling and even staff disruptions, all of which are beyond their control, they have weathered the storms and are optimistic for the Pukara Estate future.

“We have a great team supporting us,” she says. “A few of our staff have been with us for 15-plus years and their experience counts for a lot. We are looking forward to further growth. My main focus in the near future is getting Earth and Grace products to a wider audience in the regions. I know we have a product that country people will appreciate, so we’re hoping to reach them through our online store.” ac

For more information, visit pukaraestate.com.au

Written by Kirsty McKenzie

Photography Beth Jennings & David Griffen