Staff story - John Fergusson-Batte

“The main thing with cauliflower cheese is, don't put your sauce on while the cauliflower is still steaming because it makes the sauce go all watery,” he advises, his light English accent still noticeable after 30 years in Australia.

Since arriving in his early twenties, John has held onto his quintessential English traits: a dry sense of humour, a love of soccer and a good pub, and a deep appreciation for hearty British food.

Raised on the United Kingdom’s (UK) south coast, long before the days of PlayStation, John’s childhood was spent outdoors, immersed in sport, and surrounded by the chaos of a busy household.

“This was back in the day when you just couldn't get the kids in the house,” he recalls, with a smile.

“I was off on my bike with my mates, playing everything – athletics, rugby, soccer, badminton, cricket, swimming. I had a great childhood.”

John was adopted when he was six months old.

“My father always said, ‘You were chosen.’ By the time I left home at 17, we had short-term fostered over 100 babies. Remember the old Terry Towel nappies? I was pretty good at doing those.”

That early exposure to structure and responsibility may explain his current role as warehouse coordinator at Rijk Zwaan, a global fruit and vegetable seed company. Based in Victoria, John manages the company’s seed warehouse with calm precision and a meticulous eye for detail.

“I’m a bit of a control freak,” he admits. “But my dad always said, ‘If you're going to do something, do it to the best of your ability or don't bother.’”

John’s journey to Australia began with a one-way ticket and a backpack. After travelling through Southeast Asia, he landed in Sydney, found work at a printing company, and eventually secured a sponsored visa.

“After 10 years, I thought, ‘I do really want to live here’. So, I went home, applied for residency, and came back in 2002. I thought I would keep my head down, work, save money, don't meet any girls… met my wife, Jodie, about three weeks later.”

The couple eventually settled in Daylesford, drawn in by its rural charm and closeness to friends.

“I grew up in the countryside, so it felt like coming home,” John says.

John joined Rijk Zwaan in a production role for three seasons, before being offered the role of warehouse coordinator. John’s colleagues describe him as precise, independent, and a “gun on the forklift.” He also played a key role in designing the company’s expanded warehouse layout a few years ago, tripling its capacity.

“When I first started, my role was to take care of incoming stock, manage the stock in the warehouse and send out the daily orders,” John explains.

“Over the years my role evolved to becoming the local phytosanitary expert which involves monitoring changes to Australian quarantine regulations and advising Head office in De Lier (The Netherlands) to make sure we can comply before the changes come into effect,

“I also now have the responsibility of the weekly production shipments to ship back to De Lier once harvesting starts along with the R&D seed, PCR samples and samples for destructive testing and seed to overseas customers,

“I ensure the export website is up to date with the required declarations for phytosanitary certificates, maintain current import permits, and provide our freight forwarder with the necessary documents for quarantine clearance of incoming shipments. The amount of paperwork, forms, and documents I must produce, or check can be overwhelming at times.”

Outside of work, John’s passion for sport continues. A former near-pro soccer player in the UK, he played for a backpacker’s team in Sydney and later coached local teams in Daylesford.

“I gave up playing about 20 years ago when I got tired of chasing 19-year-olds around,” he jokes.

These days, he’s more likely to be found on the golf course.

“I play golf once a week at the local club and often in competitions. I had a handicap of 17 about eight weeks ago and I've had a bit of a run, so I'm down to a handicap of 12. The lower the handicap, obviously the better it is, but it makes it harder to score!”

When he’s not on the green, John enjoys watching Food Safari, travelling with Jodie, and cooking meals that remind him of home – roasts, pies, and of course, cauliflower cheese.

“I don’t get back to the UK as much as I’d like, only every two or three years. My brother lives in Spain, so we meet there when we can. Jodie and I love France and Italy too.”

While John is beginning to look beyond the warehouse floor, hoping to finally tick off a few more bucket list destinations (a Darwin trip among them), for now he’s keeping a watchful eye on the day-to-day. Mid-conversation, he glances out the window and spots a truck pulling in.

“That’ll be the spinach seeds,” he says with a grin. “The warehouse never stops.”