CANBERRA: Papua New Guinea has banned the import of Australian vegetables, worth $3.2 million a year to exporters, which is likely to limit food supplies to Australian offshore detention centres. PNG Agriculture Minister Tommy Tomscoll said he wanted to grow the country’s own vegetable industry.
The ban includes potatoes, onions, capsicum, lettuce and carrots, destined for mining settlements, retail shops for both locals and expats, and refugee processing centres. Joseph Saina, of the Australian Horticulture Exporters, foresees a shortage of fresh produce in PNG developing quickly.
“I don’t know how they’re going to feed those people (refugees), because these are staple lines – onions, potato, carrots, tomatoes – these are not luxury lines,” he said. “So that’s going to be an interesting development over the next few days.”
Australia’s Department of Agriculture has confirmed the ban is based on a desire for PNG to support small to medium businesses, but it will be in place until protocols are worked out.
Mr Saina said this was nothing to do with keeping out pests and diseases, but a non-technical trade barrier to protect the domestic producers. “The customers are not happy with the local production, the quality or consistency of supply,” he said.
“Invariably they come back to us and, in my view, in a very short time when the supermarket shelves are empty, they’ll be coming back to us, because where else will they get it from?
“I’d like them to increase their self-sufficiency, but this ban is against WTO conventions.” Several exporters at Rocklea markets in Brisbane are geared up to supply PNG. In particular, the bans will affect the Queensland vegetables which are in season now, but southern producers will be affected later in the season too.
