Overview
The Australian food industry plays an integral role in the nation’s economy. The food and beverage sector is Australia’s largest manufacturing sector, with sales and service income of $71.4 billion in 2005-06. Australia is a significant net exporter of food, with exports of $23.3 billion and imports of around $8.2 billion in 2006-07. Food exports account for 15 per cent of total Australian merchandise exports.
The food industry is a major employer, particularly in rural and regional Australia. In 2006-07, around 191 400 people (or 18 per cent of Australia’s manufacturing workforce) were employed in food and beverage manufacturing.
Over 40 per cent of food industry employees live and work in regional Australia. The regional food processing sector has a critical part to play in the health of regional communities, providing employment opportunities for young people and creating an important link in the supply-chain between farmers and fishers and consumers.
Purpose of the program
Australia has a competitive edge in the export of agricultural commodities, such as meat and grains, but is faced with a range of new challenges, including increases in global food prices, climate change and rising imports.
The growth of the food production sector, in particular the regional food production industry, will play an important part in meeting these challenges. An increase in on-shore value-adding will boost the value of Australia’s food exports. An increase in productivity will allow the industry to grow and diversify, providing alternative markets for our farmers and fishers. Productivity gains will make the sector more profitable and have flow-on benefits up and down the value-chain, from farmer to processor to retailer and, finally, the consumer.
The Australian Government has committed to ‘invest $35 million...in a Regional Food Producers’ Innovation and Productivity Program to improve productivity, innovation and profitability of Australia’s regional food producers’.
$10 million of the $35 million will be set aside for projects from the seafood industry.
The program is a merit-based, discretionary grant program. Applicants submit expressions of interest, which are assessed against eligibility criteria. Those considered eligible and likely to meet the program objectives are invited to submit an application. This application is assessed against merit criteria. Funds are limited and therefore meeting eligibility and merit criteria does not guarantee funding. The program funds projects that focus on increased productivity and development, and adoption of new technology.
This is a matched-funding program–grantees must meet at least 50 per cent of the project costs, in cash. It is generally expected that grants will be between $50 000 and $2 million. Funding will be provided on a reimbursement basis at agreed milestones throughout the project.
The program is due to end on 30 June, 2012. The maximum project length is three years. No projects will be approved after 30 June, 2012. Funded projects should be completed by 30 April, 2012 to allow final payments to be made by 30 June.
Program objectives
The Regional Food Producers Innovation and Productivity Program aims to assist the regional food industry to improve productivity and profitability through innovation in processing and value-adding.
It will achieve this by funding projects that design and/or transfer new technologies, new processing methods and new production methods and implement them for use in the regional food and/or seafood production industries. In doing so, the program will encourage the development of collaboration networks between the regional food/seafood processing industry and the rest of the supply chain.
15 Mar 2011