Senator Barnaby Joyce attended the Wheat Single Desk hearing in Perth on Monday, here’s what he had to say:
“Following Senate Committee hearings in Western Australia this week, it is clear that those pushing for deregulation are not growers but it could be well suggested the push comes from those with a vested interest in their own commercial position.
“In the state whose Senators (WA Liberal Senator Judith Admas) have stated virtually all wheat growers want deregulation, surprise, surprise the Western Australian Farmers Federation, a body that represents the greatest number of wheat farmers, stated that overwhelmingly their growers (about 70%) do not want deregulation.
“If growers do not want deregulation in the East and they do not want it in the West, where does this overwhelming support for deregulation come from? It appears the support for deregulation comes not from growers but from the companies looking to become exporters and entrench themselves as regional based and vertically integrated monopolies.
“The bulk handling companies that currently dominate port infrastructure and up-country storage and handling will now have the opportunity to become exporters and extend their dominance throughout the entire grains industry supply chain, squeezing out competitors and ultimately disadvantaging growers.
“By only looking at port infrastructure, competition can be stifled and growers will have to accept one price from one player in their region and the lack of transparency means that nobody, other than the bulk handler, knows what is in the system and where it is.
“Anchor deliverers, like anchor tenants in shopping malls, get a good price and the premium they receive is more than made up with a discount to other growers. Currently, this legislation leaves the Australian wheat grower with the potential for a closed shop monopoly protected by the accreditation provisions and no transparency in a legislated form to ensure everyone in the Australian grains industry is treated equally and fairly.
“In the same legislative stroke we have made the same mistake as we did in the fuel industry when we repealed the Sites and Franchise Acts, allowing total vertical integration. Now, instead of instead of total control of a market via vertical integration on import, we will create total vertical integration from receival to export and corporations, if they are legally allowed to exploit you for greater profits to the shareholder, not only will, they must.
“CBH in WA has 95% of the receival infrastructure. If housewives are held over a barrel by two supermarket retailers who can manipulate the market because of centralisation where two players hold approximately 80%, imagine how farmers will go in a market where one player has 95% of the receival infrastructure. Likewise, Graincorp and their major shareholder will have a tremendously powerful position in the east and the receival to export corridor will not be broken up by the inclusion of another player.
“Even the Wheat Export Authority, in 2007, found that with all its market power, the AWB monopoly was unable to reduce storage and handling charges.
“As insult to future injury, we lose also one of our greatest marketing advantages as so ably pointed by Alan Tracy of the U.S. Wheat Associates who is overjoyed by the success of the deregulation campaign in Australia.
Now Australian wheat can compete against Australian wheat in the majority of our export markets that have single desk buyers.
“If this legislation is not blocked or significantly changed, the future is the inevitable regional monopolisation and the discriminations to the growers and a financial boon to certain select players as they are delivered a monopoly position by the Federal Government.”
Have Your Say! Do you support government legislation to abolition the Wheat Single Desk Marketing system? Leave your reply in the text box below or Click on the Blue word Comments to leave your reply.
What has been uncovered here is that the large companies which are to benefit by the deregulation of the single desk have somehow convinced the wider media to misinterpret the truth ..for what reason I do not know. The West Australian should be ashamed of itself and it article, but they are not the first.
Luckily Barnaby was there or Adams would have got her way completely. I am told that the Pastoralist and Graziers have not even polled the opinion of their members and that they do not have many wheat grower members anyway.
Its a bit of a task to turn the opinion boat around when the media are so hell bent on lies.
Thanks for this opportunity Ag-Mates
Rowell Walton
Great work Barnaby.
This is the most amazing and treacherous initiative -a Government ignoring it’s wheat growers and the national interest and delivering an industry lock stock and barrel to mega traders.
If any of these loutish Australian handlers such as Graincorp.CBH and ABB think that there will anything it for them they will be sadly disappointed.Cargil,Dreyfuis and co will crush them.They( the handlers) will provide a cut price accumulation and delivery to port service.
The mega traders have been screwing the life out of the world’s grain markets for well over a century-they would see out pretender big players as chicken feed.
Unfortunately growers will well and truly be at the bottom the pile.
I’m not a grain grower only a grazier but use feed grain at times. Seems the new system will be worse than the old one of the 1930s and 40s that I have only been told about.
Seems the Pollies love going round and round in circles and never learn from history or do they do as they are told by the hands that feed them?