AUSTRALIA produces three times the amount of food it needs domestically. This fact alone demonstrates how important our export markets are.
There is now a record number of Australian businesses exporting goods. There were more than 56,700 exporting businesses in 2018-19, up by 27 per cent since 2013-14.
One in five jobs in this country depends on trade. Australian exporters, on average, hire 23 per cent more staff, pay 11 per cent higher wages and have labour productivity 13 per cent higher than non-exporters.
Coming back after COVID-19 depends on jobs and increased productivity and our export markets are a key factor in this roadmap.
Current trade tensions facing exporters have highlighted the need for market diversification, and while this is not a quick process and there is no silver bullet, the Federal Government is supporting these activities with the Export Market Development Grants scheme.
This program supports exporters, many of them in Mallee, in getting access to international markets.
I have been working closely with our local industries, meeting them regularly and taking their concerns on board, to ensure the government is listening. Growers, exporters, industry bodies have spoken with me regarding current Chinese trade tensions.
I facilitated a meeting in Canberra this week peak bodies including Australian Table Grape Association, Citrus Australia, Summerfruit Australia and Dried Fruits Australia. The chief executives and chairs of these organisations spoke with Minister for Agriculture David Littleproud and I about the short-term and long-term strategies needed to manage the emerging China trade fallout.
The advice of the minister to the industry is to make sure every “I” is dotted and “T” crossed so that their business does not become a target. We are living in a time when one grower not following protocol could bring down the whole industry.
It is imperative that industries and government continue to work together through these challenging times.
In the meeting I held in Canberra yesterday, we also discussed current issues with workforce and the migration being undertaken by the Commonwealth.
