Beltana Farm has just added a truffle-focused shop to its offering, thanks to a grant from the ACT government. Subscribe now for unlimited access . Login or signup to continue reading $ 0 / $ NaN /year All articles from our website & app The digital version of Today's Paper Breaking news alerts direct to your inbox Interactive Crosswords, Sudoku and Trivia All articles from the other regional websites in your area Continue The Pialligo venue was one of 15 businesses to receive a share of almost $500,000 in funding support as part of the ACT government's Tourism Development Fund.
The truffle farm - which also has a fine-dining restaurant and accommodation options - received $100,000 to help expand to include a shop focused on the truffle industry and other local produce, as well as a training and tasting room to enhance their offer. Beltana Farm co-owner Alice O'Mara inside the new truffle store. The project came about with the help of funding from the ACT Government.
Picture by Keegan Carroll While the addition of the shop was always on the cards for Beltana Farm, the owners said without the grant it would have been a few years away and potentially "wouldn't have been able to get as creative or finish the product as well as we have". "The grant has allowed us to fast track our overall vision for the farm much quicker," Beltana Farm co-owner Alice O'Mara said. "The farm has been designed to create experiences for people - this is through the dining, accommodation and now we're lucky enough to be able to shop with a tasting room.
We're obviously a truffle farm so this allows us to have tastings with truffle, but as we bring in other elements to the farm like bees and gardens, we can expand so that we can operate all year round. "So it really allows us to get people here for a couple of hours now as opposed to just for an hour for something to eat and to offer different experiences at different price points." Chief Minister Andrew Barr and Beltana Farm co-owner Alice O'Mara inside the new truffle store.
The project came about with the help of funding from the ACT government. Picture by Keegan Carroll Having run for the past three years, the fund is designed to encourage co-investment in tourism-related infrastructure, products and experiences that can drive economic growth in the ACT. The aim is to deliver improved visitor experiences, while also enhancing Canberra's reputation as a tourism destination.
Successful applicants have to contribute at least an equal amount of funding to the selected project. Since it began during the pandemic, more than $4 million in total funding has been invested through the program for projects in the tourism, hospitality and events sectors. Beltana Farm has a restaurant, accommodation and now a truffle store.
Picture by Gary Ramage "We want to ensure that there's diversity in the project funding so that projects large and small and distributed across the territory can receive support," Chief Minister Andrew Barr said. "Some of the projects will also deliver jobs in the construction or development phase, and then many of them will support ongoing employment in tourism and hospitality-related industries. "To give a sense of what sort of contribution the sector makes to the territory economy, the spend is approaching $3.
75 billion in the territory economy from our five-and-a-half million visitors. And there are more than 20,000 of the 270,000 jobs in the territory economy in this sector." The Tourism Development Fund was introduced in 2021 to assist the recovery of Canberra's tourism sector post-COVID.
Its success in supporting many local businesses, as well as strengthening the recovery of the local visitor economy, has resulted in a continuation of the program. Other fund recipients $10,000 to Canberra Glassworks to upgrade their public sound system $50,000 to National Capital Educational Tourism project for the addition of The Dinosaur Museum and Canberra Glassworks to the Book Canberra Excursions booking platform $11,000 to High Country Hikes for the purchase of a vehicle to establish a new walking tour $38,659 to the Gang Gang Cafe upgraded outdoor dining infrastructure to host live music and cultural events $25,000 to Abode - The Apartment Hotel Murrumbateman to develop a conference space $30,000 to the Yarralumla Play Station to build The Canberra Maze $35,000 to Share-A-Bike to establish a Lakeside Bike Hire pop-up bicycle rental facility $20,000 to Wilma for establishment of the new Canberra Region Wine Room $10,000 to the Australian Outward-Bound Foundation for a larger bus for transportation $25,000 to Capital Brewing Co for the enhancement of an outdoor seating structure $25,000 to Canberra Racing Club for the installation of wi-fi at Thoroughbred Park $20,000 to Lunetta Trattoria to establish a Red Hill lookout, ground floor wine bar $20,000 to Midnight Hotel to establish the "Mark" brand art hub $80,000 to The Truffle Farm to construct an additional luxury cabin Share Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Email Copy Amy Martin Canberra Times lifestyle reporter As the lifestyle reporter, I love finding out what makes people tick and giving insight into the different ways that you can enjoy the city we live in. Email: amy.
[email protected] As the lifestyle reporter, I love finding out what makes people tick and giving insight into the different ways that you can enjoy the city we live in.
Email: [email protected].
au More from ACT Politics Greens say all Canberra households can have food waste bins sooner 10m ago No comment s Beltana Farm expands as ACT govt hands out $500K in tourism grants 10m ago No comment s Barr rejects launching review of ACT CFMEU projects Heart treatment in Canberra improves, but more to be done: minister No comment s ACT government calls for feedback on minimum rental standards No comment s Independents complain about 'misleading and inaccurate' Labor ad No comment s.
