CANBERRA: Australia is keen on increasing horticulture exports to the Philippines by 33 percent to A$20 million this year, from an estimated A$15 million last year, according to its trade officials.
Canberra hopes to do this by rolling out more measures to facilitate trade and stepping up its promotional campaign for Australian fruits and plants in the Philippines. Anthony Weymouth, senior trade commissioner for the Philippines at the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade), expressed confidence that horticulture exports from Australia would go up due to increasing demand.
“We’d like to talk to the Philippines regarding airfreight protocol. For example, we want to ship cherries and we want them to be here in retailers within 72 hours,” Weymouth told reporters during the visit of a seven-member delegation of Australian horticulture firms on Friday.
He said Austrade is already in talks with the Bureau of Plant Industries (BPI) to establish an agreement to hasten delivery, as current shipments of fresh produce from Australia is done by sea and takes some 15 days. “We want to do this just to ensure that our products are delivered fresh. But our sea freight protocol is still alright,” Weymouth added.
Australian horticulture exports to the Philippines jumped to A$15 million in 2015 from A$500,000 in 2010 due to the BPI’s cold treatment protocols which reduced shipping time for Australian fruits. Trade officials also credited the Asean-Australia New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA), one of the country’s five trade pacts concluded via Asean, for the jump in Australia’s horticulture exports.
Through the AANZFTA, temperate fruits such as grapes, oranges, stonefruits, cherries, apples, and pears entered the Philippines duty-free. For 2016, the expanding Filipino middle-class is increase their consumption of Australian fresh produce, according to Austrade. Weymouth said there is an opportunity for Australian farmers to also ship out apples and pears.
To increase demand for its fresh produce, Austrade continues to implement its retail promotion program, dubbed the “Now in Season Australia.” The month-long promotion of Australian fruits, specifically stonefruits and table grapes is done in partnership with over 120 retail market chains including S&R, SM Supermarket, SM Hypermarket, Robinsons Supermarket, and Rustan’s. Austrade’s celebration of the third year anniversary of its retail promotion program’s coincided with the visit of the high-level horticulture delegation.
Industry associations which joined the high-level horticulture delegation include Apple and Pear Australia, Australian Table Grape Association, AusVeg, Cherry Growers Australia, Citrus Australia, Horticulture Innovation Australia, Summerfruit Australia. Representatives from Victorian State Government also attended the event.
Bilateral trade between the Philippines and Australia was estimated at $4.2 billion and increased an average of 10 percent over the last five years, according to Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Amanda Gorely.
