Australian growers taken through code

The Horticulture Code of Conduct may rumble closer to its May 14 introduction date, but still not everyone on the industry will be happy. In what it believes to be a better deal for all parties, horticulture organisation Growcom, in conjunction with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), led industry stakeholders through the ins and outs of the Code last week.

Growcom and the ACCC held meetings to explain the code to growers in all major horticulture centres of North Queensland where growers were given the opportunity to voice their concerns about various aspects of the code.

The horticulture industry has long been plagued with accusations of unfair dealings, even theft levelled at merchants and agents and with little or no control over their produce from the time it leaves the farm gate, producers have been portrayed as being at the mercy of the merchants’ honesty.

Growers have long complained about having had to install cold rooms on their farms for their produce, only to have it sit for days, un-refrigerated, on dry docks at the major markets and then have their produce down-graded, sold cheaply or told it was unsaleable.

With the code requiring an agreement between producer and agent or merchant be negotiated, put into writing and signed before the produce leaves the farm, it is hoped much of this problem will be eliminated.

Source: farmonline.com.au