SEAFOOD TRADE MATTERS

17 June 2021

This Bulletin contains information general in nature. Before taking any action based on the information provided, you should consider its appropriateness to your individual circumstances and business objectives. Exporters should verify any details with their importers prior to undertaking any action.

China suspends imported seafood

China Customs has suspended three separate Ecuadorian seafood product manufacturers over COVID detections on imported frozen white shrimp. See the official Chinese announcements here, here, and here.

A number of Indian, Russian, and Pakistani exporters have also been affected by similar suspensions in the past two weeks.

According to seafoodsource.com, Zhanjiang, a port in China’s Guangdong Province, will temporarily stop receiving cargoes of frozen seafood from Vietnam and 10 other Asian countries due to loading capacity. The port’s operations have been impacted by the latest wave of COVID in China’s south. The decision to suspend imports was commercial, rather than a measure imposed by China’s government. Read more here. 
 

Australia and UK reach ‘in-principle’ agreement on FTA

Leaders of Australia and the UK announced in-principle agreement on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) during Scott Morrison’s visit to Britain this week. Under the proposed FTA, ‘99 per cent of Australian goods by value will be able to enter the UK duty-free when the agreement enters into force next year.’ (DFAT website)

 Outcomes for exporters of premium Australian seafood are still unclear, as the full details of the agreement have not been published. But it seems likely that all tariffs on Australian seafood will be eliminated on entry-into-force. 

However, sensitive agricultural commodities, including Australian beef, lamb, dairy, and sugar, will be subjected to a 15 year phase-in before tariff-free entry into the UK is guaranteed. This is a concession to the UK farm industry, which fears it will be flooded with cheap Australian produce. 

Alongside the FTA, leaders announced a new two-way visa would be established between the UK and Australia for farm workers, as well as plans for an agriculture-focused visa category for ASEAN members. Working Holiday visas for UK citizens will now be exempt from the requirement to do farm work in Australia in order to extend the visa, and the age limit will be lifted to 35 years, representing more concessions to the UK side. 

Official information and fact sheets are available here. STAG will bring you more details as they are released. 
 

Export Cost Recovery Implementation Statement consultations conclude

Public consultation on the 2021–22 Agricultural Exports Cost Recovery Implementation Statements (CRIS) closed on 10 June. In total, the Department of Agriculture, Water, and the Environment (DAWE) received 32 written survey responses, including one for the Fish and Egg CRIS, and 15 for the Live Animal Exports CRIS. 

According to DAWE, some concerns around the CRIS process raised by industry include: 

-       Inefficiency in government service delivery;
-       Lack of transparency in pricing of government services; 
-       Disproportionate impact of cost increases on smaller operators; and
-       Difficult timing of increases, given current industry challenges.

The relevant Ministers will now approve each draft CRIS, before they are published on the DAWE website before price changes are intended to come into effect from 1 July 2021. 

Find out more about the consultation process here. 
 

Government Briefings 

A recording of Austrade’s briefing for agri-food exporters on the US and Canada markets held on 4 June is available here.
 

International Freight Assistance Mechanism (IFAM) updates

The IFAM flight schedules have been updated with the latest details on IFAM-supported flights.

Recent changes to outbound flights include: 

- A new flight for the existing Japanese Airlines service from Melbourne to Narita
- A new flight for the existing Japanese Airlines service from Melbourne to Seoul Service (Via Narita)
- An additional flight for the Qantas service from Sydney to Narita 

Full details can be found in the IFAM Flight Schedule Outbound and IFAM Flight Schedule Inbound.
 

STAG Notices are available at http://www.seafoodtradeadvisory.com

This Bulletin is a resource for Australian seafood exporters.The Seafood Trade Advisory Group receives funds from the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation.  The Fisheries Research and Development Corporation plans, invests in and manages fisheries research and development throughout Australia. It is a statutory authority within the portfolio of the federal Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, jointly funded by the Australian Government and the fishing industry.