Airfreight support package - what does it mean for seafood?

Letter from the STAG Chair

Dear all,

We are really pleased to see the federal government’s announcement regarding a support package that included specific support for airfreight exports. As you know this is something that was initiated by the STAG, in partnership with Seafood Industry Australia, to seek assistance as our export markets started to reopen at the same time as airfreight capacity was declining rapidly.

It really demonstrates what happens when there is a unified and united voice to governments about what the problem is and what the potential solutions might be. Through the interaction with the STAG participants, we were able to provide clear examples of what the problem was and by working with key freight forwarders we were also able to put forward some potential solutions. Thank you all who were involved in that.

We are trying to organise a teleconference tomorrow or Friday as a forum to discuss the progress that is being made and how to get access to the initiative.

We will post details when we have confirmed them.

Best regards,

Nathan Maxwell McGinn
Chair
Seafood Trade Advisory Group

Seafood exporters welcome the announcement of the airfreight support package

Seafood was one of the first industries to feel the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak in China. Orders simply dried up overnight at what is normally the busiest time of year – Chinese New Year.

For the past two months, seafood export businesses have been struggling in many ways with many companies in significant financial difficulty. Creating flow-on negative impacts on the economic health of many regional coastal areas, where fishing and aquaculture are integral to community survival.

There does appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel with demand for Australia’s premium seafood starting to recover in China and Hong Kong and orders starting to flow.

At the same time as the market is starting to recover, getting the product to market is proving a challenge. Many airlines have already stopped international passenger flights to and from Australia. This means that ongoing access to freight capacity, at an affordable price, is becoming increasingly harder, if not impossible, to find.

Mr Nathan Maxwell-McGinn, the Chair of the Seafood Trade Advisory Group (STAG) welcomed today’s announcement about the airfreight support package. “The support package, in this early stage of restarting the market, is welcomed by all of Australia’s seafood exporters because it will help us reclaim our premium competitive position in international markets. This is all about keeping our fishing fleets operating, our aquaculture farms and our seafood processors financially viable bringing much-needed income and job security to many coastal regions around Australia” said Mr Maxwell-McGinn.

According to the latest ABARES report, the value of Australian fisheries and aquaculture production in 2016-17 was $2.435 billion (ABARES 2018). Of this, Australia exported around $1.4 billion of seafood products. The Abalone and Rock Lobster industries together dominate this trade with a combined export value of more than $1billion.

The Seafood Trade Advisory Group (STAG) was established by the Abalone and Rock Lobster sectors in partnership with the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation to provide a united voice to governments about the priorities and needs to support Australia’s valuable seafood trade.

The STAG would like to thank Seafood Industry Australia (SIA), for working together across the seafood sector nationally to demonstrate to the Government how important airfreight capacity is to the ongoing economic health of our industry and Australia.

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

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STAG Bulletins are 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.