International grain supply chains are complex and take cooperative effort to improve, which is why personnel from Grains Australia and the Australian Government’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) travelled to New Delhi and Mumbai during August to progress Australia’s proposal for a managed import pathway with India.
The delegation included Grains Australia Senior Manager Trade and Market Access, Peter Breguet, Grains Australia Pulse Council member Julie O’Dea, of Viterra Australia, and Rashid Qaisrani and Ray Elson, of DAFF.
Grains Australia Chief Executive Officer Richard Simonaitis says the Australian grain industry’s trading relationship with India is a developing partnership and this latest visit is a great example of working together for better outcomes.
“The Australian grain industry’s involvement with India goes back decades and the notion of ‘partnership’ is significant, because it underscores the effort necessary to enhance a trade relationship, at every level, through industry and government”, Mr Simonaitis said.
“Improving the supply chain is one of the biggest challenges for international trade and benefits flow to both producers and consumers when effectiveness and efficiency increase.”
Australia’s managed import pathway proposal provides an alternative approach for the management of regulated weed seeds in consignments of Australian cereals, pulses and oilseeds for processing in India.
The visit was supported by Australia’s Agriculture Counsellor in India, Kiran Karamil, and provided an opportunity for the delegation to view and learn about India’s import processes including vessel discharges, border storage and secure transport options for movement of consignments to approved processing facilities in India. The delegation also met with a range of key stakeholders including representatives from India’s Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and key grain, pulse and oilseed importers and processing facilities.
Indian officials responded positively to Australia’s proposal while expressing the need for further written details of the proposal and evidence. There remains some work to do including the establishment of trial shipments to test the viability of Australia’s managed import pathway proposal with India. The department and industry are committed to working with respective stakeholders to establish the trial and progress more favourable trade opportunities for the export of bulk consignments to India.
“The value of visiting directly, meeting face to face, exploring and understanding what India’s importers and processors want, what they do with products Australia provides, how they want products delivered and how this interacts with India’s biosecurity system cannot be understated,” Mr Simonaitis said.
“This visit is a strong example of government and the Australian grain industry working together to pursue trade opportunities that we believe will be positive both for Australia’s industry and India’s consumers.
“Grains Australia appreciates the significant market engagement support we received from DAFF and the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade).”
About Grains Australia
Grains Australia delivers value to the Australian grains industry through the provision of industry services and functions including management of trade and market access, classification, market insights and market education that improves the industry’s competitiveness and profitability.
Grains Australia is an initiative of the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC). GRDC leads investment in grains research, development and extension (RD&E) in Australia to create enduring profitability for grain growers.
A partnership between the Australian Government and grain growers, GRDC’s primary objective is to drive the discovery, development and delivery of world-class innovation to enhance the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Australian grain growers and benefit the industry and the wider community.
Image: Delegation members Rashid Qaisrani (DAFF) and Ray Elson (DAFF). Grains Australia’s Peter Breguet and Pulse Council member Julie O’Dea (Viterra Australia) in India