Australian fresh produce importers and exporters met with government representatives at the Australian Horticultural Exporter’s Association (AHEA) AGM and Industry Forum in Melbourne on 24th August 2017.
The meeting provided an opportunity for industry to address issues and for stakeholder collaboration. Attendance figures were high as stakeholders from across industry attended.
Lois Ransom & David Ironside at AHEA Ind Forum
The AHEA represents 65% of exporters and 75% of importers by value. At the AGM members voted to change the association’s name to Australian Horticultural Exporters’ and Importers’ Association (AHEIA) to better reflect its bilateral focus, the rebranding will be rolled out in the weeks to come.
Members also voted in the existing board of directors, along with two new Executive Committee Directors; Prudence Barker of BGP International Pty Ltd, in Melbourne, and David Hooper of Harvest Moon, in Tasmania.
AHEIA Chairman Joseph Saina, welcomed the new directors and thanked the board, CEO and members for their contribution and ongoing commitment to Australia’s $1.7 billion fresh produce import and export trade.
Key speakers at the Industry Forum reflected AHEA’s bilateral focus and included speakers from the Commonwealth Department of AWR (DoAWR), Austrade, Hort Innovation (HIAL) and Freshcare.
DoAWR was represented by Lois Ransom (Assistant Secretary, Plant Import Operations) and David Ironside (newly appointed Assistant Secretary, Plant Export Operations). Both speakers addressed issues of market access, and two-way trade.
AHEA AGM & Industry Forum - Dominic Jenkin (CEO)
DoAWR established the Imported Fresh Produce Working Group (IFPWG) in May 2017, which includes representatives of various industry stakeholders. Matters addressed included implications for the regulation of fresh produce arising from the new Biosecurity Act 2015, the department’s transition from Offshore Preshipment Inspection, modernisation of the way imported fresh produce is regulated, as well as irradiation as a phytosanitary measure for regulated pests of fresh produce.
Ms Ransom also spoke of management of biosecurity risk, and focussing the most attention on issues that involve the most risk, as well as using historic data to reward compliant pathways through reduced inspections using the Compliance-Based Inspection Scheme (CBIS), an evidence-led, risk-based approach.
David Ironside spoke of the market access and prioritisation process, the mechanisms for industry engagement and the importance of effectively engaging all relevant parties. He demonstrated willingness to engage with members of the audience to address operational issues that were raised during the course of the day.
Jenny Van de Meeberg (Senior Trade Advisor, Austrade) provided a glimpse of the future of shopping for fresh produce, albeit with a warning note that Australian exporters must retain a focus on innovative value-adding to maintain their competitive advantage. She spoke of personalisation; which retailers use to emotionally connect customers to a product.
A new example of this is the “Taste Australia” branding which HIAL have developed and will be launched at Asia Fruit Logistica in Hong Kong this month.
Clare Hamilton-Bate (General Manager – Industry Development, Freshcare) spoke of the expanded range of responsibilities that Freshcare now has, and provided important new information on the accreditation required for exports and the interest in such accreditation by our major trading partners.
Freshcare has developed a new, interactive, on-line platform, allowing training and accreditation to be done online. Importantly for exporters, Freshcare certification has now been benchmarked against the international Global GAP standard, and to gain Global GAP accreditation suppliers now only have to upgrade their current Freshcare certification.
HIAL was represented by Michael Rogers (General Manager Trade). Mr Rogers mentioned that horticulture accounts for about 15% of GVP in agriculture i.e. $11.3 billion. Hort Innovation invests approximately $120 million each year in R&D and Marketing and manages about 650 active R&D and Marketing projects.
HIAL has committed funding to the “Frontier Funds” – facilitating collaborative cross-industry projects with a long-term focus, focussing on challenges in areas identified as important to securing the future of Australian horticulture, and dependent on feasibility of outcome and clear pathways to adoption of new markets.
Wayne Prowse, Fresh Intelligence Consulting, provided up-to-date statistics on the growth of horticultural trade in 2016/17. Australian fresh produce two-way trade increased 7 per cent to $1.7 billion, of which exports alone were $1.2 billion. China is the leading market by volume and value worth $245 million.
It was noted that Chinese imports of fresh produce have increased exponentially and that the majority of Asian imports are imported from regions that are geographically close (predominantly Asia). Singapore, UAE and Japan are the three largest importers of Australian vegetables.
Ben Reilly from Steritech detailed the investments that Steritech are making in Sydney and Melbourne to increase access to phytosanitary irradiation and efforts in engaging with government and industry to support its use in satisfying import and export protocols.
The afternoon was concluded by Dominic Jenkin (CEO) who emphasised the importance of transparency and communication across industry and government as we seek a more coordinated approach to market access and expansion, increased value and efficiency of trade.
The AHEA has been the peak industry body representing exporters and importers of horticultural produce in Australia since 1987. AHEA seeks to foster greater collaboration across the value chain, providing leadership to support and strengthen Australia's competitive advantage in the trade of horticultural produce.
For more information:
Dominic Jenkin
Australian Horticultural Exporters Association
Tel: +61 0423 394 476