Behind The Brand: The Australian Carob Co

Behind The Brand with The Australian Carob Co.

The Australian Carob Co make the sweetest, most delicious carob and have been challenging chocolate for more than two decades, growing a carefully curated selection of carob on their dedicated orchard in South Australia after discovering how delicious carob can be.

Since planting their first trees they've grown to be a worldwide sensation, revealing the true taste of carob with their organically grown carob kibble, powders and syrup.

Come with us behind the brand as we discover the secrets of growing great carob with founder of The Australian Carob Co, Michael Jolley.

The Australian Carob Co's founder Michael Jolley

Tell us a bit about The Australian Carob Co. When did you start growing carob and why?

About 22 years ago I was looking at what I could do other than my back-breaking gardening work. While in-thought about our future I discovered some delicious tasting carob pods and compared it to the carob powder that was being sold in stores. The flavour was very different. So, my wife and I decided to purchase a 76 acre block of land in Booborowie near Burra South Australia to start growing great-tasting carob.

The Booborowie valley has very good quality (and quantity of) underground water, which was perfect to start growing carob trees so we could create a delicious, sweet tasting carob powder.

Your orchard is home to select varieties of carob. Why did you choose these specific carob trees?

We grew these sweet varieties based on taste, planting two varieties of hemathodite to ensure good even flowering throughout the orchard. There was such a big difference in sweetness and taste for what we could grow in Australia!

The Australian Carob Co Orchard

We love that you practice sustainable farming, without the use of pesticides or insecticides. Can you tell us why you chose to farm carob this way?

I was a gardener be before starting our carob orchard and I believe nothing tastes better than naturally organic fruit and vegetables. When we started, the dream was to create an orchard where the trees are naturally happy within a sustainable and organic environment. We wanted to be able to produce carob pods the trees themselves could be proud of.

For anyone who is yet to try carob, how would you describe its flavour?

Roasted Carob Powder is naturally sweet like drinking chocolate.

Raw Carob Powder has more of a malt flavour.

Carob Syrup is superb but a little hard to describe... It is sweet and goes with almost anything.

Your carob is so sweet and delicious! What goes into making quality carob?

We chose to plant sweet tasting varieties of carob and to create a happy, organic environment for them to grow in. Plus, throughout our processing, every stage is done with the respect of each and every carob pod to allow them to shine and be enjoyed the way they want and deserve to be.

Tell us about carob, how is it different to cacao?

Cacao needs a lot of sugar added to make it sweet because it is naturally bitter but the carob we grow is naturally sweet. It doesn't need any added ingredients or additives. Carob is also free from theobromine. Plus it is very good for you.

What’s your favourite way to enjoy carob?

My favourite way to enjoy carob is carob syrup. I drizzle it on my breakfast cereal every morning. This is an everyday thing so even if we go away, I always take some carob syrup with me to enjoy.

Article by Sarah Vercoe

Sarah is a freelance writer and award-winning photographer with a special interest in health, travel, and fitness. Based on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, she can be found hiking the trails of Noosa National Park, or, more likely, chasing after her one year old daughter, Illyana.