Australia: Potato growers demand deregulation date

Currently the industry is regulated by the Potato Marketing Corporation (PMC), a statutory authority charged with managing the supply of fresh potatoes in the state.

Potato Growers’ Association of Western Australia president Danny Omodei said most farmers did not want to end deregulation.

But he said they had accepted that the industry would be deregulated and they were now looking for certainty from the government.

Attendees spoke about how difficult it had been to continue operating since Premier Colin Barnett flagged the end of the unique West Australian potato regulation system in April 2015.

Growers also discussed what kind of assistance package they could expect from the government once the industry was deregulated.

The growers’ association commissioned an independent report from advisory firm ACIL Allen Consulting, which suggested that the government would need to provide $24 million to farmers to compensate for licenses and transition out of the regulatory model.

But many farmers are concerned they may end up with less than half of that figure after media reports suggested the state government would allocate just $10 million.