Charcoal from Balranald to barbeque
From the Spring 2008 edition of Bush Telegraph Magazine.
Charcoal pits continuously smoulder in John Treweek’s operation. Photo by Howard Spencer
The Australian barbeque is as much a part of our culture as flies in summer. It also seems to attract about as many arguments about the best way to cook as it does flies.
If you want the best results from a barbeque, then natural charcoal is about as good as you can get. But while you are waiting for it to heat up on a balcony overlooking the sea, spare a thought for the humble beginning of the fuel for cooking that tasty morsel.
In New South Wales, charcoal is made probably as far away from the sea as you can get, over near the New South Wales, Victorian and South Australian borders.
It is here, near Balranald, that the charcoal story begins.
John Treweek is a charcoal burner, a trade that is almost as old as human existence.
“I can remember my father making his own charcoal to fire his blacksmith’s forge,” John says. “But when I wanted to start making it myself, there was virtually no information available.
“Eventually I found a little leaflet that mentioned it, and that is what I used to get going.”
Today John is Forests NSW’s largest producer of charcoal, mainly for the food trade, although this humble product is used in such diverse areas as water filtration, steel making and gunpowder.
John believes mallee is the best wood to use for charcoal production, but he can be allowed a little bias, as he is converting mallee residues into charcoal on leasehold land near Balranald, in the NSW south west near the Murray River.
It is not just any land. The owner, Peter Morton, has voluntarily placed 3600 hectares of his property Pine Lodge into a conservation area, as part of his property management that includes 1200 ha for crops. John is making use of residue material that would otherwise have been windrowed and burnt.
“I’ve been working on this project for four years and have about another four years of work ahead,” John says.
The stems or stumps are placed in pits about 3m wide, 6m long and 3m deep, where a fire is started at the bottom. The pits are covered with corrugated iron, and the overlaps and ends sealed with earth except for a few vents which allow a limited air supply.
The pits are left to smoulder for five to six days before another load of timber is placed on top, the pile relit, and the process begins again.
After a few weeks the pits are totally sealed to stop the combustion process, then uncovered to reveal the charcoal, which still appears the same as when it was covered, except the wood has turned black.
However, if lightly tapped this material instantly breaks apart into beads of charcoal.
John has about 30 of these pits on his site, for stems and stumps. He keeps a close eye on them 24 hours a day, as any strong wind change can mean the difference between a pit of charcoal and a pit of ash.
The 20kg bags of charcoal are marketed to wholesalers in the capital cities where they sell for about $18 to $25 a bag, but demand is strong and supply is limited.
Howard Spencer, Public Affairs & Media, Coffs Harbour
