Farmers warn of national fruit shortage if no workers found Farmers are warning the nation could be facing a fresh fruit shortage if Australia doesn’t work to secure a worker quarantine facility in the NT.
Business by Natasha Emeck
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Subscriber only FRUIT growers are warning the nation could be facing a fresh fruit shortage if Australia doesn t work to secure a worker quarantine facility. The NT Farmers Association estimates the national agricultural industry is currently facing a shortage of 20,000 workers due to a lack of suitable quarantine facilities. Pinata Farms managing director Gavin Scurr said he fully supports the agricultural industry s proposal to use the Bladin Point Worker Village as a quarantine facility for seasonal workers.
Hot weather forces an Australian pineapple farmer to re-adjust his growing strategy
A leading Australian pineapple grower has made the decision to move production of the fruit out of the Northern Territory indefinitely because the hot weather is affecting yields.
Piñata Farms Managing Director Gavin Scurr says supply will be made up at the company s other two farms in Queensland: Wamuran and Mareeba. Over the past few summers, it s been tough. This one was a better one, there was a bit less heat, but the ones before that were pretty brutal, Mr Scurr said. We ve stopped planting pineapples for the time being. When we came over to Darwin, we stopped expanding because we didn t want an oversupply. So now we have ramped up plantings in Southern Queensland to cover what we used to do up here. The demand for pineapples has been interesting with COVID-19, with the fruit being a good immune booster and people understanding the health benefits more and more. It all comes down to people
Failure to secure the facility will make it extremely difficult for us to harvest our crops
One of Australia’s largest fruit growers has warned that the nation may experience fresh fruit shortages if Australia does not act to secure a worker quarantine facility.
Managing Director of Piñata Farms, Gavin Scurr, stated that he fully supports the agricultural industry’s proposal to utilize the Bladin Point Worker Village as a quarantine facility for seasonal workers. It is located less than one hour from Darwin International Airport and hospital.
It comes as the agricultural industry is facing a possible shortage of 20,000 workers due to a lack of suitable quarantine facilities.
Australian Growers Concerned About Potential Taiwan Pineapple Imports
Australia’s largest pineapple grower and a federal politician are concerned about the biosecurity risks of importing Taiwanese pineapples into the country after the Taipei Times reported that six tonnes of the fruit would be shipped to Australia in May.
This comes after Taiwan’s vice president wrote on Twitter on March 1 that an Australian importer had ordered Taiwanese pineapples.
A spokesperson from Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture told The Epoch Times on March 16 that the Taiwanese exporter was busy preparing the shipment and that a media conference is planned to be held in Australia. They did not confirm the quantity being shipped.
Taiwan looks to export pineapples to Australia, as China ban bites
TueTuesday 9
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WedWednesday 10
Pineapple farmers in Taiwan are looking for other markets after China banned the trade.
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Key points:
China abruptly banned pineapple imports from Taiwan, citing biosecurity concerns
Taiwan will reportedly export its first consignment of pineapples to Australia in May, which is concerning Australian growers
The Taipei Times has reported that a shipment of six tonnes of pineapples is expected to arrive in Australia in May, and smaller quantities [will also] be sent by air cargo .
If true, it will be the first shipment to arrive since the Australian Government approved Taiwan s market access for decrowned pineapples in March last year.