North Queensland pumpkins heading for Japanese market

Pumpkins grown specifically for the Japanese market are being exported out of Queensland for the first time. Growers around Bowen in north Queensland are among those planting "buttercup squash" or kabocha solely for export to Japan with hundreds of tonnes to be sent abroad later this year. Bowen Gumlu Growers Association president Carl Walker said Japan provided excellent agricultural export opportunities and the region's growers had been working hard to build relationships with the country. "Japan only grows about 30 per cent of their own food and every year that is declining as the population grows," Mr Walker said. "If we can pick up even a small percentage each year, suddenly there's a huge market there for our growers." Bowen growers were involved in a kabocha trial last year and Mr Walker is one of about five growers in the Bowen area growing the unique squash this winter. "They put the call out to find more people so I made space. I could see it was a good opportunity for ...