Australia
August 28, 2025
Stephanie Knight is Rijk Zwaan’s Technical Sales Representative based in Melbourne and their resident brassica crop specialist. She has been particularly excited with the newly introduced Campohana RZ variety, which has been close to two decades in the making. Here, she tells us why it’s changing the world of cauliflower growing.
What keeps cauliflower growers up at night?
Cauliflower is in the field all year round in the brassica growing regions of Australia. The key is to have high-quality fresh caulis that are uniform in colour, with good head weights at all times of the year. Shoppers look for freshness and value, while growers also focus on yield and quality. If either of these factors are lacking, profitability suffers.
Why are you so excited about Campohana?
Campohana ticks so many boxes, and our trial results so far demonstrate it grows extremely well in Australia’s cooler growing regions, such as Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and Bathurst, NSW.
I have been working in brassicas since 2008 and this is a real breakthrough because it combines speed, head density and weight in one variety, so that’s a serious milestone. It clearly demonstrates how much time and effort our breeders put in to perfecting our different varieties. I’m enormously proud of what they do.
What other advantages does Campohana offer cauliflower growers?
Campohana offers a genuine solution to two main issues facing growers – speed to maturity and head quality.
Campohana offers excellent quality but is faster to mature than some of the existing varieties. The plant itself is also a bit smaller, which makes harvesting the cauliflower in the field easier and faster saving time and money for the grower. And, despite its faster growing time it is still considered a ‘slow-growing’ variety, which equates to a higher density head that maintains great shelf life and good value to both the grower and the buyer.
The other major benefit Campohana offers growers is the self-covering capacity it offers. Without good ‘wrap’ of the head by the leaves, the cauliflower will turn off-white and not be as marketable. The wrap we see with Campohana is excellent so it ensures a lovely white curd and a high percentage cut-out rate, which means less waste in the field from a more sustainable, successful crop
Campohana RZ
What have the reactions from growers during trials been?
We’ve had a very positive response so far from trials in the field. Growers can see the advantages of speed and uniformity and are impressed with the quality and weight. This is the second season that we are introducing it in the field at scale. Last season was on a smaller scale, but we already have some commercial orders for next season.
Steph among the brassica trials with the Rijk Zwaan Australia team
How are we preparing and eating cauliflower these days?
Cauliflower is used in so many ways in our kitchens across Australia. It is a staple in most households but the widespread use of ‘cauliflower rice’ as a replacement for carbohydrates has led to increased interest from consumers and growers alike.
The influence of different cultures in Australian kitchens has also seen us all expand the way we prepare this vegetable. It’s great baked, steamed, stir-fried and even deep-fried
Do you have a favourite way to eat or prepare cauliflower?
My two boys are big fans of cauliflower as it makes a great healthy snack. I love this easy airfryer recipe, but there are so many great ways to prepare cauli to choose from!
Contact Stephanie to talk about about Campohana RZ and our full range of cauliflowers.
Featured products
CAMPOHANA RZ F1 (26-CA4060)
Cauliflower | White
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