By Grain Producers Australia Chair and WA grain producer Barry Large
Grain Producers Australia (GPA) will soon release its 2025 federal election policy priorities that it will advocate for during the upcoming election campaign.
These policy priorities will build on the 12 GPA has already advocated during the 2022 election and in this current term of government.
Therefore, GPA's 2025 policy platform will be strengthened by the positive momentum already in play, such as standing up to fight against the proposed biosecurity tax while coordinating an increase in direct investments and policy measures to strengthen biosecurity protections for growers.
We've also advocated grain producers' serious concerns about the APVMA's performance, while providing clear input into the ongoing reviews of paraquat and diquat.
GPA's soon to be released list of 2025 Federal Election Policy Priorities will also be sharpened by the results of our recent grower survey.
This shows Australian grain producers are seriously concerned about high input costs and want firm action taken to try to reduce these escalating costs.
Growers are also seriously concerned about the APVMA's performance and capacity, and its impact on their ability to maintain access to important agricultural pesticides, to ensure they can continue producing grains more efficiently and sustainably.
Other grower policy priorities include improved digital connectivity and reliability; better access to farm labour; and, reducing the regulatory burden and costs of red and green tape.
GPA's 2025 priorities will again provide the government with good opportunities to support genuine investments and policy initiatives that can continue growing and building on the industry's social and economic contribution to the nation.
Backing the grain producers who primarily enable this continual growth to occur also helps drive other shared benefits and value-adding opportunities - including for the environment.
Our industry has contributed $81.15 billion in total gross value towards the national economy in the past three years, at an annual average of about $27b.
This represents about double the value reported before the previous election ($13.8b in 2020-21). And this $27b also represents more than 30 per cent of the annual average of the total value of farm production nationally, for this same period ($261b).
These impressive numbers provide compelling proof that the Australian grains industry is at the forefront of the Australian farm sector's aspirational target to be a $100b industry.
These numbers clearly demonstrate the true value of future investment in policies and initiatives that back the continued success of Australian grain producers, which in turn delivers multiple shared benefits and positive results for the national economy, whilst strengthening rural communities.
Backing policies that back Australian grain producers and our communities can be, and should be, recognised as a real vote-winning opportunity, with genuine benefits for the nation, at this year's federal election.
This article was first published on Farm Weekly, 11 February 2025: HERE
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