Labor has released a discussion paper on its red meat industry strategy, announced by agriculture spokesman, Joel Fitzgibbon, and Labor’s candidate for Flynn, Zac Beers, in Gladstone today.
“The discussion paper is our path to a Strategic Red Meat Industry Plan which a Shorten Labor government will use to lift productivity and to promote sustainable profitability for both producers and processors. That also means more regional jobs,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.
Labor consulted with stakeholders as it developed the paper, with more consultation to come before a final policy is determined.
Exports
The paper identified growth potential in global markets and higher value market segments.
However, a Labor government would face a challenge living up to the Coalition’s record on free trade, which includes deals in recent years with significant red meat markets in Japan, Korea and China.
The union movement is typically sceptical of the reciprocal market access which such deals afford to importers, and the impact on Australian jobs.
But meat processors could find common ground with Labor and the Australian Meat Industry Employees Union (AMIEU) in a push to expand chilled meat exports.
The AMIEU opposes live exports and highlights the impact on domestic processing.
Mr Fitzgibbon has set a five-year time frame to phase out sheep live exports if Labor wins government, but he acknowledges there is as yet no detail or costing for his plans to expand domestic processing to replace the live exports.
Labor has invited feedback from live export producers about how government can assist them to transition to domestic slaughter.
A Labor government would be under pressure to maintain focus on non-tariff barriers which take a huge toll on red meat export competitiveness.
Trade Minister, Simon Birmingham, has launched an Action Plan to reduce non-tariff barriers, which it is estimated could deliver 10 times the benefit of halving tariffs through trade deals.
According to a 2017 report by Meat and Livestock Australia and Australian Meat Industry Council there are 245 non-tariff barriers, which cost $3.4 billion a year across 41 red meat export markets.
Non-tariff barriers on chilled red meat in the United Arab Emirates costs Australian exporters around $60 million a year.
Workforce
Labor will be forced to juggle the competing workforce concerns of industry and the AMIEU.
Meat processors argue that the local workforce is unwilling to fill vacancies and promote the need for reliable access to overseas workers. Cost of production, including wages, is a key concern for processors.
Labor’s discussion paper noted that the AMIEU identified onerous four-day shift work as a barrier to attracting local workers.
It said market testing to demonstrate the need for overseas workers was crucial, and noted Labor had pledged to crack down on “dodgy labour hire companies that rip off and exploit workers”
The paper said putting Australians into jobs “must be our priority”, but acknowledged there is ongoing need for temporary visas for overseas workers. It said funding for TAFE and employment programs must be boosted to encourage local workers into meat industry jobs.
Labor also highlighted plans to improve regional economies to attract more meat workers to regional towns.
Rural research and development
The party’s discussion paper committed it to a review of levy payer funded Rural Development Corporations, which were founded under a former Labor government.
“While announcing a review is often an easy policy option, a re-examination of the architecture of the 15 agriculture-based Research and Development Corporations is over-due,” the discussion paper said.
Mr Fitzgibbon has previously expressed concern about the RDCs, and floated the idea of public funding being made available through competitive tenders open to all organisations.
“Some are top heavy, there is a lot of siloing, mission creep and some are effectively de-facto farm leadership groups,” Mr Fitzgibbon said in September last year.
“In places, there is a disproportionate focus on marketing and I note with concern most tend to only invest to their matching cap, a clear sign things aren’t as good as they could be.”
The discussion paper also said red meat stakeholder groups were “fragmented and often the industry is marked by conflict”.
Labor will ask stakeholders if the current model still serves the industry well and if the Red Meat Advisory Council could play a bigger role.
Labor wants feedback on drought policy, too, and its impact on red meat supply, regulatory costs, innovation, transport infrastructure and energy costs.
Consulting with key stakeholders is ongoing.
- Written submissions can be lodged at Sandra.crowe@aph.gov.au
