Chef on a mission to spread the word about native foods

While vegemite, meat pies and sausage rolls might be synonymous with Australian cuisine, chef Mindy Woods is advocating for it to be so much more.

Ms Woods, a Bundjalung woman from the NSW north coast, counts herself lucky to have grown up on Country surrounded by native foods.

She fondly remembers childhood days with her nan, collecting and cooking with ingredients on the beach.

Since entering the sector professionally in her 30s and opening her own restaurant in Byron Bay, Ms Woods has made it her mission to raise the profile of native foods and showcase locally sourced and Indigenous produce.

"As a modern Australia we don't really have a sense of what our food identity or food culture is," she told AAP.

When she first opened the doors at Karkalla, she realised there was a huge appe