Growcom has congratulated Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce on following through with his election promise to facilitate better access to agricultural chemicals.
More than $1 million of assistance grants have been allocated to horticulture commodities under the Federal Government’s Improved Access to AgVet Chemicals program.
It is pleasing to see so many horticulture commodities receiving the grants including pineapples, blueberries, mandarins, mangoes, bananas, papaya, passionfruit, stonefruit, avocados, custard apples and a range of vegetable commodities.
Horticulture Innovation Australia (Hort Innovation) should also be congratulated for their role in developing the applications for these important chemical products.
The $1.6 million investment will help fast-track new products and allow existing chemicals to be approved for wider uses, giving farmers more options to fight pests, weeds and diseases.
Australia is a relatively small market, which can sometimes mean the cost involved in registering an agvet chemical here makes the venture uncommercial.
This funding will bridge the gap by helping producers to access the same innovative agvet chemicals as some of their international competitors.
The grants program is part of the Federal Government’s $8 million investment package into improving access to agvet chemicals.
Growcom has been an active advocate for improved access to chemicals for many years and is a member of the Australian Government’s Access to AgVet Chemicals advisory committee.
In the lead-up to the federal election, Growcom calls on all parties to commit to ongoing funding for the collaborative forum and to maintaining the momentum on regulatory reform.
A full list of the successful horticulture applicants can be found on the Hort Innovation website at http://horticulture.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/grants-list.pdf
