Farmers welcome next step on National Food Plan

The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) has today welcomed the release of the green paper into the National Food Plan as the next step towards securing a sustainable food system.
Speaking from the launch of the National Food Plan green paper in Sydney this morning, NFF President Jock Laurie says the Plan has the potential to address many of the farming sector’s concerns about future food production and food availability.
“The vast majority of Australians have never had to worry about where their next meal comes from, as we are extremely lucky to have a wide availability of healthy, fresh and affordable food in this country,” Mr Laurie said.
“But with a growing population at home and abroad, and only limited resources from which our farmers have to grow an ever increasing amount of food, the issues of food availability and our future food supply are very real.
“The NFF submission to the National Food Plan issues paper called for a focus on the innovation and productivity improvements that our farmers will need to increase food production with these limited resources.
“We are pleased to see that the green paper, released this morning by Minister Ludwig, identifies the importance of research, development and innovation to sustainable food production in Australia, along with the need to seize new market opportunities and contribute to the economic prosperity of rural and regional Australia.
“We particularly welcome the Government’s position, as outlined in the green paper, on the need to increase and improve the research and development model currently in place in Australia and to develop a national strategy for the consistent application of technology, including genetic modification.
“The green paper also identifies the need to examine better ways to manage supplier and supermarket relationships; the need to source information to better understand Australia’s future infrastructure requirements; and the importance of trade market access and the liberalisation of markets – all areas the NFF and our members have taken to governments as priorities, and all issues that have emerged as key issues in the development of the Blueprint for Australian Agriculture.
“The NFF will continue to contribute to the development of the National Food Plan – and at the same time, continue to develop the Blueprint, which considers the future of the agricultural sector as a whole.
“These two future-focused plans will play vital roles in securing a strong and sustainable future for our sector – be it food production under the National Food Plan or the wider agricultural sector under the Blueprint,” Mr Laurie said.