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Prime Minister Kevin Rudd offends apple growers
Australia: Apple pie jokes not funny for growers
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd might have thought he was being funny last week when he answered a serious question about the apple trade dispute between Australia and New Zealand with some throw away lines on what he planned on having as a third course at lunch. But the seriousness of the challenge to Australia's import restrictions on apples from New Zealand in the World Trade Organisation's court of appeal is no laughing matter and could have significant impacts on Australia's quarantine arrangements.
Australia will allow New Zealand apples into Australia, but not before the apples are put through a rigorous cleaning and screening process to stop the spread of the disease, fire blight into Australia, which is free of the disease. Australian farmers are not satisfied the protocols will be enough to keep fireblight out of the country, while New Zealand farmers argue the quarantine rules are too onerous and restrictive to trade. If New Zealand win, Australia could be forced to revise its quarantine protocols not just for apples, but across the board, in the interest of free trade.
This is despite two major quarantine reviews currently under way, the Callinan Inquiry into the outbreak of equine influenza and a broader government review of existing quarantine and biosecurity regulations, to determine whether Australia's laws provide the appropriate level of protection for Australian agriculture. Several major disease outbreaks, including citrus canker and the EI outbreak would indicate that current arrangements are not up to scratch and may even be putting Australian agricultural industries at risk.
Two Senate committee hearings last year heard there was still a "likely" risk that fire blight would enter Australia and would cost the local apple and pear industry more than $1 billion in lost production and exports. New Zealand's Prime Minister, Helen Clark, was unapologetic for her defence of her country's farmers and their decision to pursue action against Australia. It's a shame the same could not be said for Mr Rudd, who would not be drawn on the dispute or publicly defend Australia's position, and was happy instead to dismiss it as a joke.
Source: farmonline.com.au
Australia: Apple pie jokes not funny for growers
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd might have thought he was being funny last week when he answered a serious question about the apple trade dispute between Australia and New Zealand with some throw away lines on what he planned on having as a third course at lunch. But the seriousness of the challenge to Australia's import restrictions on apples from New Zealand in the World Trade Organisation's court of appeal is no laughing matter and could have significant impacts on Australia's quarantine arrangements.
Australia will allow New Zealand apples into Australia, but not before the apples are put through a rigorous cleaning and screening process to stop the spread of the disease, fire blight into Australia, which is free of the disease. Australian farmers are not satisfied the protocols will be enough to keep fireblight out of the country, while New Zealand farmers argue the quarantine rules are too onerous and restrictive to trade. If New Zealand win, Australia could be forced to revise its quarantine protocols not just for apples, but across the board, in the interest of free trade.
This is despite two major quarantine reviews currently under way, the Callinan Inquiry into the outbreak of equine influenza and a broader government review of existing quarantine and biosecurity regulations, to determine whether Australia's laws provide the appropriate level of protection for Australian agriculture. Several major disease outbreaks, including citrus canker and the EI outbreak would indicate that current arrangements are not up to scratch and may even be putting Australian agricultural industries at risk.
Two Senate committee hearings last year heard there was still a "likely" risk that fire blight would enter Australia and would cost the local apple and pear industry more than $1 billion in lost production and exports. New Zealand's Prime Minister, Helen Clark, was unapologetic for her defence of her country's farmers and their decision to pursue action against Australia. It's a shame the same could not be said for Mr Rudd, who would not be drawn on the dispute or publicly defend Australia's position, and was happy instead to dismiss it as a joke.
Source: farmonline.com.au
Publication date: 3/5/2008
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