A VIDEO showcasing premium Australian agricultural produce will be displayed during the Australia Week in China (AWIC) trade mission this week to assist with the development of a unified brand.
The three and a half minute video clip was developed by ASA100 members Dairy Australia, Meat and Livestock Australia and Wine Australia in collaboration with Austrade.
It was designed to leverage the common strengths of Australian premium provenance across the meat, dairy and wine categories by showing images of cattle and sheep grazing, vineyards, wine tasting and food service in restaurants like dairy and beef product.
Its messaging reinforces core themes directed at the Chinese market like “clean, green and safe” food produce and the diversity of product made by “farmers who care for their land and animals”.
The ASA100 brings together influential participants in the Chinese and Australian agrifood sectors to collaborate in promoting two-way trade and stemmed from a meeting in early 2014 between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Australian mining magnate Andrew Forrest.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Trade Minister Steven Ciobo, Assistant Trade Minister and the Minister for Tourism and International Education Richard Colbeck and Trade Ambassador Andrew Robb will also participate on the ground in the AWIC event.
ASA100 Co-chairs Mr Forrest and Business Council of Australia CEO Jennifer Westacott welcomed the common messaging initiative being unveiled in Shanghai during AWIC with the video being shown to Australian politicians, business leaders and Chinese investors.
Austrade and ASA100 members plan to test the success of the common messaging in-store across China and via online trials and use the data to quantitatively demonstrate the benefits.
Mr Forrest said all ASA100 members had staked their reputation on coming together under a unified messaging export brand.
“We know there are risks involved but we also know the benefits far outweigh those concerns,” the Minderoo Group Chair said.
“Growth of demand for food in China to 2050 is expected to top $1 trillion, driven by rapid urbanisation and the proliferation of middle class consumers.
“Chinese demand for food is projected to double by 2050, underpinned by rising middle class incomes and increasing urbanisation.”
Ms Westacott said the Australian economy would reap the billion-dollar windfall posed by Chinese consumers choosing trusted Australian imported agrifood products.
“We know that the Chinese value our products because they trust the origin to be clean and safe,” she said.
Senator Colbeck said he supported the ASA100 branding initiative and had been a long-time advocate for a strong Australian brand and held talks on the concept with Mr Forrest.
“It’s not my job to say what that brand should be but there’s no question Australia has a strong reputation in the Chinese market and a strong simple message around branding can only advantage that,” he said.
“I think the risks lay in people going off in all directions rather than working together, because it confuses the market.
“They will have to spend more on their individual brand than you would on a common and consolidated brand and in a market as big as this you’ll struggle for news space so trying to work individually won’t work.
“Something that’s strong, consolidate, easily recognised and well recognised across this market will have a much, much better level of success for each of the individual groups than what they would have trying to run their own brand on their own.”
Senator Colbeck said AWIC involved over 1000 individuals from 750 businesses which provided a strong demonstration of how important the relationship was between the two countries from a government and industry perspective; especially food and beverage, to the market valued last year at $150 billion.
“The high quality and safe food products we manufacture or produce in Australia are in significant demand in this market and that demand is only going to continue to grow,” he said.
“But there is also real opportunity, as China’s agriculture sector continues to develop, for Australia to provide tertiary education and research and vocational education and to develop products that will work in favour of the agriculture sector’s needs in China.
“A significant appetite exists for what Australia has to offer so they recognise the quality and safety of our food product which means something in the context of what we may be able to offer in our vocational training.”
Senator Colbeck said farm educational opportunities involved teaching China how to improve their food safety standards and production systems in areas like soil and water management.
“General management of product, food safety, farm management systems - all of those sorts of things could be developed into a vocational offering,” he said.
Mr Ciobo said Australia provided high quality clean and green food products and beverages that are becoming increasingly more popular in China.
He said the trade mission would be used to build upon that reputation and to advance implementation of the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement.
“This is really exciting for an agricultural producer country like Australia,” he said.
“We are already seeing some good gains in terms of Australian exports into China.
“These are of course very early days, and I'm not going to say a trend is developing at this stage, but certainly some of the early numbers show that the ChAFTA is delivering on expectations with respect to preferential market access that Australia has into China.
“Likewise we know that there will be benefits to Australian businesses, which flow from reduced business input costs into Australia, and that of course is also good news for Chinese businesses.”
