Rocket, or rucola in Italian, is a weed found on the side of many a country road in Italy, along with fennel, capers, artichoke and other familiar vegetables. Italians and Greeks have been eating wild food for thousands of years, as have First Australians.

The plants that grow wild in Australia, and have done since the beginning of time, have sustained the world's oldest living culture for 60,000 years.

So why is it that in Australia, we don't find Warrigal Greens in packets next to baby spinach and rocket in the supermarket? Warrigal Greens are abundant, grow wild across Australia (closer to coastal areas), are nutritious and require zero care or fertiliser.

Importantly, Warrigal Greens taste delicious especially when sauteed with garlic and olive oil, in Asian style soups and the baby leaves work beautifully in salads. It grows in our yard so abundantly that I joke I'm going to open a stall at the Margaret River Farmers' Market and sell it.

Slow Food Movement International Councillor for Oceania, Vincenzo Velletri, believes it's important we embrace native food.

"It's important for several reasons, first of all because these plants have been living in Australia for thousands of years and are well adapted to the local environment and therefore, they are more resilient," says Mr Velletri.

"The other reason is because of the harsh environment the plants have been living in, they have more nutrients and provide more health benefits, for example, the Kakadu Plum has the highest recorded natural amount of vitamin C of any food in the world."

Kakadu Plum, or gubinge as it's known in the East Kimberley and Northern Territory, has up to 100 times the vitamin C of an orange. The vitamin C potency of the small green plum is two-and-a-half times that of Brazil's acai berry and almost five times the antioxidant properties of blueberries, plus it contains lutein which known for improving eye health.

Mr Velletri says Indigenous foods are unique to Australia and could be an asset in our culinary offerings and attract gourmet tourists.

"At the last four editions of Terra Madre in Italy, one of the biggest international food events that Slow Food organises, we had a stall where we showcased some of the Australian native foods which was extremely successful in terms of attraction to our stall and the response from the people coming and tasting it," he says.

"In my opinion we would need more availability of the products at local level so that our chefs can work with them and promote them to the general public.

"We need more Indigenous people to take responsibility and pride in producing this food and making it more available, and sharing the story, the cultural tradition behind that particular food. We would also need more funds available for the industry to be developed."

The Indigenous food industry is reportedly valued at $50 million, yet just two percent of businesses are Indigenous-owned, and this must change. There is an opportunity for Indigenous food businesses to flourish for products that are in demand.

Nyul Nyul man Robert Dann, owner of Bugarrigarra Mie (Dreamtime Food) says the biggest barrier new businesses face in the native food industry is finance, and in his case, space.

Mr Dann explains the Aboriginal bush foods that are not yet widely available come with extra costs for the required approvals for commercial sale.

"It cost me $1,500 just to get the analysis of the boab powder four or five years ago, but I think this is something the Government can do," he said.

Mr Dann is also the owner and operator of Kimberley Cultural Adventures, a tourism business in Broome.

"My passion is the bush foods and getting them out there across Australia, and the tourism business is a job that I do, that I also enjoy, but it's a job to help fund the food business," he says.

"At the moment, we have to send our fruits down south for processing, but I think we should have a processing plant up here, which will help families, create jobs, and then we can do it all from here in the Kimberley and end up with a finished product," says Mr Dann.

One native food success story is the macadamia. Although Macadamia Australia is not an Indigenous owned business, it has been successful in making the hard-to-crack native nut commonplace in our diets and it was the first native food to be exported.

Containing healthy monosaturated fat, vitamins and dietary fibre, the creamy-textured nuts were introduced to the rest of the world in the late 1800s.

The Australian Macadamia Society states macadamias are now the fourth largest Australian horticultural export with more than 700 growers across three states who produce approximately 50,000 tonnes per year, 70 percent of which is exported to 40 countries.

Jacqui Price, marketing manager of the Australian Macadamia Society says the nut can be used as a case study for other native foods.

"The industry transformed a niche native nut into a global success through strategic marketing, international trade partnerships and strong provenance storytelling," Ms Price says.

"Native foods have incredible flavour, health benefits, and cultural significance.

"Expanding their presence in supermarkets, restaurants, and packaged foods could help more Australians appreciate their rich heritage and health benefits."

There are some online shops where we can buy native foods, although most of these are usually in the form of dried herbs, frozen or dried berries, jams, chutneys, beverages and teas. Products that can easily be posted.

In the last decade, fresh native Australian ingredients have been making increasing appearances on restaurants menus. Wattleseed, lemon myrtle, finger lime and samphire are regulars.

While some fresh native foods are widely available, for example kangaroo meat, many others are not, which begs the question, why not?

Woolworths and Coles were contacted for comment and while a list of specific questions went unanswered, both sent statements.

A Woolworths spokesperson says, "We're committed to investing in Indigenous suppliers, and we currently have a number stocked in our stores across the country, such as Lone Crow coffee and Banyar Jagun cleaning products."

"These suppliers are based across the country from Victoria to the Northern Territory, supplying into hundreds of stores across the country," says a Woolworths spokesperson.

A Coles spokesperson says, "We are proud to work with more than 70 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses and suppliers throughout our supply chain."

"There is growing interest in incorporating native Australian ingredients into our product range to connect customers with our local culture and highlight our rich biodiversity."

Encouraging words, but if the big players in Australia's food supply chain say they are committed to stocking native Australian foods but have very limited selections on the shelves and none in the fresh food department, it forces Australians to shop elsewhere for native foods.

A pioneer in the native food space and a good ally, Juleigh Robins, owner of Outback Spirit, once had a number of products stocked in Coles, and over the years that has dwindled to just one chutney.

Outback Spirit is an Australian food company that works with and supports Indigenous growers and communities with a vision is to continue bring Indigenous foods into the mainstream food market.

"As an individual, and as a brand, we want to see native foods in all pantries across the country," Ms Robins says.

"There is a degree of fresh food going out to the food industry, but not to consumers and I suspect that's for two reasons; limited fresh supply, and consumer demand."

Ms Robins says the native food industry will take time to mature.

"An interesting fact, botanist Joseph Banks took the seeds of Warrigal Greens and grew them in a palace in London, and Napolean and Josephine took a liking to it, and grew them in France, and now it's very common in France and known as 'tetragon'," she says.

"It's not a parallel here, but just an example of the length of time it takes to get something accepted in the mainstream."

Wardandi Bibbulmun woman from the Margaret River, Busselton area, Dale Tilbrook is a pioneer in Indigenous tourism, retail and food with her Perth business Maalinup offering bush food products and tastings.

"I probably put the first quandong jam on the shelf in 1998 or 99," Ms Tilbrook says.

"Our very own delicious 'superfood' like roasted ground Wattleseed can be added to cakes and biscuits for a nutty flavour, as well as added to stews to thicken and introduce deep umami flavours.

"I can't think of a better way to celebrate Australia's native edibles than to use them on a daily basis."

The best way to support the native food industry is to buy from independent businesses and grocers, ask for native products to be stocked at your local store, and have a go at growing your own. After all, many of them grow like weeds.