Biggest rice marketing shake-up in nearly a century

It will change how NSW growers market their rice for the first time since vesting was introduced in 1928 under the marketing of primary products act.

It comes after the NSW government last month introduced a bill to develop a new rice export marketing and trade arrangement for the Northern Rivers region from September 1, 2024.

The Land reported that while Northern Rivers could organise their own arrangement for exports, those in the south would keep existing rice vesting arrangements in place until a review on June 30, 2029.

But there was mounting pressure from rice growers from across NSW to end statutory rice export marketing (vesting) arrangements as soon as practical for an industry that had an estimated farm gate value of $219 million in 2022-23.

Under the government's Bill, vesting for the southern growing region will end July 1, 2025, with the Rice Marketing Board to be wound up by July 1, 2026.

The decision to remove rice vesting aligns with the recommendations in the recently published Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resources Economics and Sciences 'Independent Report into Rice Vesting'.

The NSW government has committed to ensuring the industry is supported and will work with the present sole and exclusive export licence holder, SunRice, to resolve the access to rice seed aspect of the present arrangements and enabling a supported transition for the sector.

Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty said the government while drafting the Bill to modernise the state's rice marketing arrangements received requests from rice growers in southern NSW to end the vesting arrangements sooner rather than later.

"Discussions with rice growers across the state demonstrated to the government there was agreement that a transition in rice export marketing be brought forward," Ms Moriarty said.

"Growers in the Northern Rivers region have long advocated for a change to vesting and southern growers have recognised the need for greater commercial flexibility to respond to future challenges."

Industry and Trade Minister Anoulack Chanthivong said this decision would open the door to more export opportunities for NSW rice growers, which meant businesses that were more productive, created more jobs and paid higher wages.

"We're committed to making it easier to get this state's world class products into global markets where they attract a premium that flows back to regional NSW in the form of more jobs and better opportunities," he said.

"The value of goods and services exported from NSW topped $150 billion last year, and we want to work across the economy to do even more."

An Rice Transition Group, which will be led by the NSW Department of Primary Industries, will focus on:

This change to rice marketing arrangements reflects similar deregulation that has occurred over the past decades to other agricultural commodities including wheat, barley and dairy.