Welcome to our July update - Australian Wild Abalone™ News! It's been a busy few months with a lot happening, so please take the time to have a read through our update, and get in touch if you have any questions or would like any further information!

A note from Dean Lisson - Executive Chairman, Abalone Council Australia Ltd

Dear abalone stakeholder 

Welcome to our latest AWA™ Newsletter. The AWA™ Team are very excited about the imminent launch of two new initiatives that between them, will boost our exposure in key Asian markets.

The first is the launch of the new China AWA™ website and associated Asian social media platforms. Whilst our Australian website (www.australianwildabalone.com.au) has four language options and attracts attention from all over the globe, the simple fact is that if we want a significant online presence in our key markets in Asia, we need to have an Asian based website with associated Asian social media platforms optimised for mobile digital platforms such as smart phones and tablets. AWA™ Project Officer Helen Barnard has been working with Shanghai based digital media company Allin in recent months to develop the sites and upload the necessary content.

The second initiative is the launch of the China based Abalone cooking competition. AWA™ has partnered with the China Cuisine Association (CCA) to host 'The Australian Wild Abalone™ Dish Innovation Design Competition'. This competition will provide some great content for our Asian digital media platforms. The competition will also be launched on the China Cuisine Association official website providing additional digital media exposure.

The AWA™ Team will be travelling to each abalone producing states in the months ahead to provide more information to abalone stakeholders about the introduction of the abalone marketing levy – hopefully I will see you at one of our sessions!

Happy fishing!

Dean Lisson

AWA™ Roadshow and FAQ's

The Australian Wild Abalone™ Program and the research behind it has been funded to date via the Seafood CRC from funds collected by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation R&D levy that industry contributes to. The Seafood CRC finished in June 2015 and therefore the time has now come for the AWA™ program to stand on "it's own two feet" as it enters the next critical stage in it's ongoing development. As the AWA™ program transitions from the being an R&D project to full commercialization, the funding support needs to transition from R&D providers to the abalone industry.

If the industry wants the AWA™ program to go forward and promote the wild caught abalone products on a global stage into the future we now need to work on how that will happen.  The Project Team is currently conducting the AWA™ Roadshow, travelling to each of the producing states and hosting briefing sessions with stakeholders - abalone divers, license and quota owners and processors/exporters.

At each Roadshow event a formal presentation is provided and then there is an opportunity for stakeholders to ask questions and provide feedback to the team. Several briefings have already taken place and a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's) in response to the feedback has been produced.

Dean Lisson, through the Abalone Council Australia Ltd, has circulated this document far and wide, however, if you haven't already seen the FAQ document it can be downloaded here. Please contact us to find out when the team will be in your state, and take this opportunity for discuss the future or the program and the industry.