Real time horticultural price reporting is a contentious subject in Australia, causing a divide between fruit and vegetable growers bodies. While NSW Farmers’ Horticulture Chair, Brett Guthrey, speaking on behalf of Growcom, NSW Farmers, Vegetables WA and Victorian Farmers Federation, who also support the measure, believes, "The time for arguing about the benefits of the real time price reporting is finished,'' Fresh Markets Australia (FMA) Executive Director Andrew Young could not disagree more.
The crux of the matter is that Growcom is calling on politicians on all sides to support real time horticulture price reporting as part of a response to the independent review to the Horticulture Code of Conduct. Whereas Andrew Young considers that Growcom is misrepresenting real-time price reporting as a recommendation of the Independent Review of the Horticulture Code of Conduct to the Government.
According to Growcom, the final report into the review of the code was released by the Government on 8 February 2016. It contained recommendations to maintain a revised code and for improvements to horticultural price reporting as part of securing the sustained viability of the horticulture sector.
Yet, Young states “Real-time price reporting is clearly not — and never had has been — one of the Independent Review Panel’s 13 recommendations to the Government and it is improper for Growcom to try and claim otherwise.”
On the other hand, Guthrey states "The independent review of the Horticulture Code clearly articulated the importance of real time price reporting to horticultural markets stating that ‘the need is great’ and ‘the potential benefit … is large."
Both sides acknowledge that daily reports detailing prices for most fruit and vegetable crops were already available but poorly subscribed, and Guthrey states: "All the necessary information to bring real time reporting to life is already available and new technology enables this information to be delivered cheaply.''
However, Young believe real-time price reporting would be ''an impractical and expensive folly''.
Growcom is part of an alliance of rural lobby groups pushing the Government to introduce all 13 recommendations of the Independent Review of the Horticulture Code of Conduct without further industry consultation.
Mr Young said although the FMA broadly supported 10 of the 13 recommendations, significant work needed to be done to ensure the resulting legislation was effective, workable and fair.
“Stakeholders, including growers and wholesalers, have been assured by Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources Senator Ann Ruston that the Department of Agriculture would prepare a discussion paper on the review recommendations before the government issued its formal response. We expect that promise to be met,” he said.
Mr Young said FMA had always believed the Independent Review was a way of fixing faults in the nine-year-old Code that risked destabilising Australia’s fresh fruit and vegetable supply chain.
“Now they have made their recommendations, it is appropriate that proper consultation and legislative processes continue to be followed to ensure the current Code of Conduct works for all parties involved in the Australian Horticultural industry,” concluded Mr Young.
As for Mr Guthery, he finished by saying: "We’re calling on all sides of politics to address the issues raised by the review.''
For more information:
Rachel Mackenzie
Growcom
Tel: 07 3620 3844 or 0408 796 199
Andrew Young
FMA
Tel: 0438 388 411