Cheesed off: Aussie dairy at centre of trade quandary
Are Australian cheesemakers producing hard cheddar cheese under trade terms with the European Union, or is this essentially a gouda deal?
Cheese became the unlikely focus of a 20-minute debate in Senate estimates Wednesday; because agricultural officials acted like a Swiss bloc and opened loopholes in criticism of trade negotiations.
After nearly a decade of negotiations, Australia and the EU reached a deal in March in which both sides cut tariffs and expanded trade.
Under the agreement, domestic dairy producers retained the right to describe their products as parmesan, but other cheese names such as feta, romano and gruyere will eventually be phased out.
Tina Hutchison, the department’s assistant secretary of commerce and regulation, told the hearing it was a victory in negotiations.
“This was an important issue raised by the dairy industry during discussions,” Ms Hutchison said.
But Nationals leader Senator Matt Canavan said the industry was concerned about removing tariffs on European cheese and expanding access to heavily subsidized imports.
Jared Greenville, boss of the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences, suggested producers should not get too excited.
Dr Greenville said subsidies for European dairy farmers were actually quite low, equivalent to $1.70 for every $100 of income.
He said the trade deal was also a tool to increase transparency around market disruption that could affect prices.
“Australia has a long-term position where we are trying to address policies that distort trade and production around the world to deliver a freer market that helps not just our own producers but more broadly.”
Red meat quotas have dominated agricultural trade discussions; The industry described market access for an additional 30,600 tonnes of beef and 25,000 tonnes of sheepmeat as a “staggering” disappointment.
Deputy Under Secretary for Global Agricultural Trade David Garner said negotiations with the EU were always challenging and agriculture was particularly sensitive.
Mr Garner said the combination of quotas meant more fresh meat would enter the European market than frozen produce.
“Given that fresh and chilled beef is more valuable than frozen meat, this was a good result for the industry,” he said.
After Senator Canavan questioned the market access percentages in the entire trade agreement, agriculture minister Victoria Anderson referred him to the secretary of state.
“Our aim is always to get the best outcome for agriculture, but as you know there are agreements that cover the whole economy,” Ms Anderson said.
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