Tractor models are parked, row upon row, in colour-coded sections that range from greens to…
Tractor snacks
Twenty metres of cling wrap, eight loaves of bread, three kilograms of ham, one jar of pickles and countless pre-packaged snacks: during their first harvest together, this was an inventory of the contents of Camilla Herbig’s husband’s lunchbox. She was working full-time travelling across western NSW as a social worker, and was not prepared for the busiest time of the year on the farm. At the end of five weeks, they were both exhausted and craving a decent meal. She also felt guilty.
In 2020, as she and her husband began planning for their biggest harvest in four years, Camilla decided to start an Instagram page called ‘Tractor Snacks’ (@tractorsnacks) where she could share recipes, tips and ideas for how to efficiently prepare delicious healthy food to eat on the tractor.
“It really began as a tool to give inspiration to other farm families who were in the same boat as us and it was also a way to keep me accountable,” says Camilla.
“I love cooking but I’m no gourmet chef. I just started putting together old recipes that just work for good, hearty country food, and then I started suggesting time-saving tips such as doubling or tripling recipes, and freezing single portions that can be easily pulled out of the freezer in the early morning.”
“For many farming households, women are no longer solely working on household tasks and raising children. Many, like me, are working off-farm, or running their own small businesses and/or also working in the farming business,” says Camilla.
“I believe that while we look for quick and easy solutions, we also should not compromise on the health component.”
The name ‘Tractor Snacks’ came from her husband, who wrote it on the shopping list one day, hoping for pre-packaged lunchbox snacks like chips and biscuits. Never did he realise that it would turn into this new initiative. Her Instagram account has exploded and now has more than 2,600 active followers.
“I love cooking but I’m no gourmet chef. I just started putting together old recipes that just work for good, hearty country food, and then I started suggesting time-saving tips such as doubling or tripling recipes, and freezing single portions that can be easily pulled out of the freezer in the early morning.”
Camilla is a fourth-generation farmer who lives with her husband Jason and daughter Sophie on their broadacre cropping farm in Collie, in the state’s Central West. She is also a social worker with the Rural Adversity Mental Health Program in Western NSW, where she does community outreach and training on mental health and wellbeing, and links people in remote areas to mental healthcare services.
As a member of the Dubbo Show Society and a volunteer with multiple community organisations, agriculture is her big love. She’s equally passionate about reducing the impact of mental illness in rural and remote communities.
“As a social worker, I’m interested in understanding all the contributors to good health,” says Camilla. “We know that diet, exercise, sleep, social connections, down-time and hobbies are all important for good health, however many of these are really tricky to maintain at peak times on farm, particularly during sowing and harvest. A healthy diet is one element which I can influence and, while I haven’t done formal research about this, I’ve learned anecdotally that a nutritious, varied and interesting diet can assist our bodies with effective concentration, problem solving, conflict resolution and safe physical exertion especially during times of stress.”
“We’ve had our fair share of adversity through droughts, fires, floods, and mouse plagues (yes, plural). But one constant through it all is a love of food and the way it brings people together.”
She started focusing on how food could play a bigger role in wellbeing and decided to put more effort into lunchboxes and tractor dinners.
“It’s about providing healthy and varied heartwarming, belly-filling, nutritious comfort food for busy farm workers to keep them going through the long hours and to have something to celebrate when the job is done.”
“Tractor Snacks is more than a bunch of random recipes but it isn’t about putting a gourmet restaurant into a lunch box either,” says Camilla.
“It’s about providing healthy and varied heartwarming, belly- filling, nutritious comfort food for busy farm workers to keep them going through the long hours and to have something to celebrate when the job is done.”
“Mental and physical health is so closely linked with productivity,” says Camilla.
“I genuinely believe I can see a difference in my husband’s wellbeing and motivation, depending on what’s in his lunchbox and tractor dinners. When there are fresh options and plenty of variety in the meals I make, he’s in a better mood with a clearer mind… and the lunchbox returns empty.”
“It’s not only about what goes into the lunchbox but also how it’s packaged. Ideally the recipes are simple to make, healthy and delicious to eat and are also easily frozen, transported, and reheated. They must be easy to eat as wraps or with forks, as farmers
often are working with one hand and eating with the other,” she says.
“We also bought an inexpensive 12V oven from a car accessory store. You just plug it into the cigarette lighter and you can warm up sausage rolls or pinwheels and toast sandwiches.”
Recently, Camilla has also been hired by NSW Farmers to create Instagram videos that showcase how simple and delicious it is to follow recipes from The Farmer magazine, which highlight local produce from around the state.
Some of Camilla’s most popular recipes include zucchini slice, pizza pinwheels, Greek chicken tray bake, and lemon coconut slice. You can find some of these recipes on her Tractor Snacks website (tractorsnacks.com.au) or you can buy her Harvest Hacks cookbook ($22 print version or $12 e-book version) on the website. The cookbook also includes lots of handy tips to make food preparation easy and efficient on a busy farm.
The proof, as they say, is always in the pudding. So, what does Camilla’s husband Jason think of her healthy, homemade tractor snacks?
“It’s so good to open the lunchbox and find so many different snacks when things get really busy on the farm,” he says. “It’s great to have such a variety of things that are tasty and easy to eat on the run.” Enough said.
