Review of regulatory export barriers for Australian vegetable growers
The more formal definition of red-tape (relating to paperwork and other administrative requirements), while a focus of this project, was not considered to be the most significant burden to exporters, particularly with the existing trend of moving towards e-forms. Instead, the key issues and barriers to export identified by business were more process-related (for example, understanding the requirements or the ability to meet requirements in a timely and cost effective manner). These key issues are listed below under three groupings: Enabling export readiness, Interactions with the Department of Agriculture (DoA) and Overlap of quality assurance (QA) requirements and cost competitiveness. As the population continues to grow, global demand for food is expected to increase substantially in the coming decades. Average annual growth in the real value of global food demand is predicted to be 1.3 per cent between 2007 and 2050, representing an overall increase of 75 per cent.19 ABARES predicts that China, a geographically close but relatively untapped region for export, will account for 43 per cent of all growth world-wide in agricultural demand to 2050. Currently, many businesses are using exports as a form of hedging their domestic supply, but are not placing as much focus on expanding their exports due to various export related barriers that are discussed later in this report. Some interviewed businesses suggested that Chinaβs perception of Australian exports is that they are neither nimble nor fast, making Australia comparatively difficult to work with. Businesses also suggested that the domestic market is extremely over-supplied, resulting in growers often having excess produce or capacity that could be directed to overseas markets.