IF the Sunraysia (and Australian) citrus industry is looking to turn the corner, 2023 could be the start of something special.
After two intensive days of the Citrus Australia Market Outlook Forum in Mildura last week, chief executive Nathan Hancock says following two of the worst years on record things can only go up.
Mr Hancock said a perfect storm of logistics chaos, endless wet weather that left a huge slice of production too soft to market and rising costs of business not reflected in rising prices, had soured the industry.
But this year conditions were definitely on the improve, with better weather, better logistics, better market demand and increased production.
“Farmers, all farmers, have to deal with challenge and change on a day-by-day basis and that was a driving force behind the Market Outlook Forum,” Mr Hancock said.
“It was designed to raise the issues critical for citrus growers and marketers, not just this year, but for the next five years and beyond.
“Which meant a focus on economics, on fiscal policy here and abroad and how the world views our products – and the impact that has on the consumer at the retail point.
“And there are messages we are still not getting across to those consumers, and we have to do that better too.”
Hort Innovation told forum participants that, based on the past 10 years, horticulture could by 2030 treble its export growth but needed to improve some of the pillars underpinning its progress.
For example:
● Australian investment in R&D lags behind despite clearly identified benefits.
● Building grower resilience is key as significant disruptions will continue to impact the industry.
● Industry growth and its trust and reputation within local and global communities.
Environment, social and governance R&D investments were required to underpin sustainable growth.
The horticulture peak body says research shows 45 per cent of Australians will prioritise the environment and climate change in how they live and the products they buy.
About 70 per cent of the industry’s customers had net-zero targets set and a further six intended to and would need to invest to deliver on these aspirations.
Yet incredibly, Mr Hancock said, 94 per cent of Australians still weren’t getting their recommended daily intake of fruit and vegetables.
“We have to better educate consumers on the nutritional benefits, from vitamin C to micronutrients, of eating oranges and drinking juice and stack that up against key competitors,” he said.
“Then there are the challenges of sustainability, biosecurity and traceability and people have to work very hard on all of those.
“In the big picture of things, globally, the Australian citrus industry is not a big player, but our export markets are what underpins everything.
“So it is crucial we position the industry going forward to focus on consistently producing quality, so we all know where we fit into the scheme of things. We need to focus on what we do well as an industry in general and exports in particular.
“From where and how we grow, picking and packing, shipping, every step we take has to be the best quality decision possible.
“That includes the size, look, taste, even the packing and cartons, of our product, it is all so important.”
The cost of making these changes in production keeps falling on growers to absorb, yet in a time of rapidly rising prices, monthly interest rate hikes were costs reflected in the price on the supermarket, but not in grower returns.
Mr Hancock said there was a lot of pressure on growers to continually absorb costs all along the chain to keep consumer costs down.
He said growers were just as exposed to many problems, from finding workers to the soaring cost of inputs, including diesel, energy, taxes, administration loads and fertilisers. Virtually every cost associated with farming keeps going up.
“Another thing which would be a real winner would be retailers better backing our production, especially in the promotion of 100 per cent Australian orange juice,” Mr Hancock said.
“Clearer labelling and promotion of 100 per cent Australian juice is needed so consumers know what they’re buying.
“Concentrate is not where the full nutritional benefits of citrus can be found, and there is some exciting and game-changing research coming to back that up.
“Hearing its progress being talked about at the forum was a truly uplifting experience.”
Mr Hancock said the health benefits of citrus and fruit juices needed to go way beyond a simple fructose measurement to the full suite of nutritional values.
He said the five-star rating system was “a crock” that had been hijacked by interest groups and drifted away from its core purpose – to provide a nutritional guide for consumers.
“That said, there are so many new things just arriving, or on the horizon, that will have such a significant impact on the way we will do things tomorrow, next week, next year and beyond.”
Hort Innovation production and sustainability R&D general manager Anthony Kachenko said advances such as adopting internet of things technology “can deliver $22 billion in value to the agriculture sector”.
Dr Kachenko said investing in plant nutrient discovery, or unlocking value with space-based technologies, could also deliver benefits.
He said the sustainability conversation would intensify and would need to be embraced, but the challenge for the industry was to achieve sustainability profitably.
Market forces were likely to outpace regulation across the value chain, driven by consumer needs.
Data would be important to “tell a story” at different levels from organisation through to “brand Australia”.
“We must not only be the ‘clever country’ but also a country that leads the way with innovation.”
Mr Hancock said the next five years for the industry would bring an increase in production “to somewhere close to 1.2 million tonnes per annum”.
“It will likely mean an increase in exports to over 400,000 tonnes a year, which means more effort in market expansion and improved market access.”
He said this would need more skilled workers “either through our TAFEs and universities, or through improved migration options that meet our industry and other horticultural industry needs”.
“It will also mean more accommodation options in regional Australia because there’s limited options out there right now.
“As an industry we’re going to need to be ready for change, to adapt to rising labour costs, to innovate and become more efficient while still producing the highest quality available, because in a global market that’s what sets us apart from our competition.”
