We began planting in 2000 and the trees take around 10 years to yield their first fruit. Full maturity with commercial yields is reached after 14 years and being slow growing, the trees can live for over 100 years. Importantly, this long lead time to production acts as a barrier to entry to competitors.
Irrigation 
The whole orchard is irrigated with drippers and controlled by an automated programmable system. We have licences for two bores of potable water on-site with a submerged pump and unrestricted allowance.
Pruning
Pruning of trees is required every two years mainly to provide access for the harvesting machine.
Pest Management
Identified pest is the carob moth (family Pyralidae) which typically lay eggs in early spring (September-October). To control these, we have installed an electric discharge insect control system (bug zapper) with timer switches for evening function. These are mains supply powered, located throughout the orchard and control the moth very effectively. There are no other pests or known diseases that affect the trees or crop.
Harvesting 
Harvesting takes place in late summer (February-May) using a tree shaker with catcher canopy. With our equipment, we can harvest 140 trees/hour (approximately 1,000 trees/day). Note; as with other fruit trees, the Carob tree tends to have large bi-annual crops. A full crop year is typically followed by a lighter crop year as the tree recovers from heavy fruit bearing in the previous year. This can be attenuated by managing irrigation and fertilisation to even out the crop yield (i.e. restrict fertiliser and watering when a large heavy crop is likely and increase fertilisation and watering in the year following a heavy crop).
Storage
Harvested carobs are stored in large mounds on a clean concrete floor inside the main processing shed to await processing. This method of storage prevents moisture build-up which can lead to fungal growth.
Carob Processing
Carobs are processed through a number of stages as depicted below:
Processing Equipment
We have extensive processing equipment on-site and produce and pack a range of carob products. Processes are wash and dry system, carob dryer, kibbling, roasting, milling. Our equipment includes:
Our carob kibbler was purchased in 2010 and has a processing capacity of 1,500kg/hr. The kibbling process (crushing) is where the carob pod is cut into smaller pieces and an air-separator is used to isolate the smaller pieces of the carob from the seed.
The kibbled nibs are stored in bulk bags (800kg) awaiting further processing. The seed is stored for sale as an emulsifying agent in the food industry.
Roasting
The electric roasting oven was purchased 2010 and can roast 400kg/hr. Roasting is carefully controlled and various levels of roast can be obtained. After roasting the kibble is stored in bulk bags prior to being milled. Not all carob is roasted as we sell raw carob powder as well as roasted carob powder.
Milling
The milling machine was first purchased 2012 and since then, has been upgraded and improved until 2018. It has a processing capacity of 100kg/hr. The milled carob is then packed in bulk bags for either repacking in retail packs or conversion to carob syrup (undertaken outside by a contractor).
All these machines operate unattended and only require occasional attention for loading or unloading.
Packaging Equipment
The filling machine was purchased in 2013 and the output varies with the product packed but is typically 3,000 packs/day. All our retail products are Doy-packed.
Maintenance
All the machines are well-maintained and serviced as required. Spare parts are readily available and we have not lost any significant production from equipment breakdown.
Quality Management Systems
We have a documented quality management system and are certified externally by SCI QUAL International for Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Point (HACCP) and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) for the manufacturing, packing or holding Human Food. A copy of our certificate is shown in the Attachments.
In addition to this important qualification, we have an Operations Manual for processing operations and an Orchard Management Plan which sets out all key requirements for irrigation, fertilisation, pruning and pest control.
Human Resources
Current Organizational Structure
We are a lean efficient company with one (1) casual employee, four days a week.
Key Manager Profile
Michael Jolley
As Managing Director, Michael is responsible for all operations and marketing activities. He has a background in garden establishment and maintenance and is experienced in planning, organising and executing a wide range of tasks. He successfully operated his own business for 20 years before establishing The Australian Carob Co.
WH&S Policy
We have a documented Workplace Health & Safety policy together with detailed procedures. We have a very good safety record and there has been no lost time injuries since the business commenced in 2000.
HR Policies
We also have a number of standard HR policies covering equal opportunity, discrimination, sexual harassment and bullying etc. We have never had any reportable incidents occurring.