AU: McCain Foods' looking for 'productivity improvements' in 2012

The Victorian Farmers Federation is worried about the long-term future of the giant McCain Foods' processing plant in Ballarat. A McCain spokesman told the Herald Sun yesterday it had no plans to shut down the factory within the next 18 months, but was evaluating all plants in Victoria. McCain Foods Australia and New Zealand managing director Steve Yung said: "McCain will be looking for productivity improvements from potato growers in 2012." The news comes as potato farmers come under increasing price pressure, particularly from potatoes exported by New Zealand.

VFF president Andrew Broad said the cost of processing potatoes into chips in Victoria was the real problem facing the industry. "We would be very concerned about McCain's going down this path of moving food production offshore," he said. "The state and federal governments need to reduce inputs into production like the carbon tax and payroll tax." A spokeswoman for Climate Change Minister Greg Combet said a $150 million fund would help compensate farmers when the carbon tax was introduced. A state government spokeswoman said Victoria had the second lowest payroll tax of any jurisdiction in Australia. "The Coalition Government is implementing a clear plan to improve Victoria's competitiveness, secure jobs and attract new business investment including implementing a commitment to cut business red tape by 25 per cent by July 2014,” she said.

Source: heraldsun.com.au