Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Hansard source

Our home state of Tasmania will be a huge beneficiary of this agreement. Tim Reid, a cherry grower in my home state of Tasmania, recently travelled to China on a business mission to explore the opportunities. Mr Reid says that he has seen a more than thirtyfold increase in exports of cherries to South Korea in just the first few months of the Korean free trade agreement, which eliminated a 24 per cent tariff.

Following the drop in export costs to Japan, the Abalone Farms Australia director says they are now exploring how they can capitalise on the reductions delivered by the free trade agreement. Under the free trade agreement the 14 per cent tariff on live and fresh chilled abalone will be removed. And the largest honey company in Tasmania, OzHoney, is looking forward to tariffs of up to 15 per cent being slashed. Mr Bourke, the owner, says, 'We're producing record numbers of everything.' (Time expired)