Barker's of Geraldine thriving after linking up with French jam maker

The fruit preserving business was founded in the late sixties by Anthony and Gillian Barker as a way of supplementing their farm income. Now it employs over 250 people and produces about 800 finished goods.For over half a century, Barker's of Geraldine has been delighting the palates of Kiwis with its jams, syrups, sauces, and an array of other condiments and beverages.This iconic family business, with roots firmly planted in the heart of New Zealand's South Island, has been a household name since the late 1960s.Founded by Anthony Barker and his wife Gillian, Barker's began as a humble venture, aimed at supplementing their farm income. Listen to the journey of innovation for this iconic New Zealand brand.Little did they know that their foray into the world of culinary delights would evolve into a thriving, internationally recognised brand."We've got some of the early gear that we used in the winemaking process back in the 1970s," Michael Barker, son of the founders, recalled during a visit from Country Life."My father struck upon the idea of making wines. He knew he could make all the equipment himself, and he knew how to make wine because he'd been making wine since he was a boy. That's how Barker's wines was born."Their inventive spirit is evident in the exhibits at the Geraldine Museum. A full-size replica of Anthony Barker stirring a copper laundry tub filled with elderberries, heated with his homemade diesel burner and a vacuum cleaner venturi blast system, serves as a testament to their ingenuity.While the Barkers started as sheep farmers in Pleasant Valley, just 8km from Geraldine, their journey into winemaking marked the beginning of their culinary adventure."The real success was as a visitor attraction because everyone that came got offered numerous tastings of an ever-expanding variety of very extremely interesting wines, liqueurs, and aperitifs," Michael explained."They got given a guided tour around the very interesting engineering structures and vessels and contraptions. It was the biggest and most significant tourist attraction we had in its time, with 20,000 visitors."The visitor attraction not only put the Barker name on the map but also gave them a platform to expand their product range, Michael says."It certainly got us started and gave us a launching pad for when we launched our black currant syrup and the jams and chutneys and all the products you see in the supermarkets today," he added.Michael recalls helping out in the shop from the age of around 13. He then went to Lincoln University with plans of going overseas after, to pursue a winemaking degree…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details