Ken Wyatt (Hasluck, Liberal Party, Minister for Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 31 August I had the pleasure of facilitating a Hasluck growers meeting between grapegrowers in the Swan Valley and orchardists in the Perth Hills. I invited them to meet a representative from the health and wellness industry to discuss opportunities to supply the therapeutic bioactive extractive raw ingredients that could be sourced from the agricultural waste streams. Sandalford Winery in Caverham hosted the roundtable. My thanks and appreciation go to Grant Brinklow, CEO at Sandalford Winery, for providing the venue and the generous hospitality given to all participants. What an excellent venue it is to have in my electorate of Hasluck.

Also in my electorate, two other premier Caversham vineyards were represented at the roundtable. Thanks to Travers O'Rafferty from Mandoon Estate and Daniel Pinelli from Pinelli Estate Wines in the Swan Valley. There was a great mix of growers from wineries and long-time successful orchardists: Anthony Vincenti from Weemala Orchard, Barry and Michael Padula from Padula's Orchards, Eric and Reno Leotta, and Fred and Mark Wilkinson from Sunpick Orchards. I thank them all for showing an interest in developing initiatives for their businesses.

The roundtable discussion was about looking for opportunities for growers to value-add to their total production and look at options available to the agriculture sector to market more of their produce with the extraction of beneficial products from waste that occurs in the vegetable and fruit sector. While the food bowl in Australia is primarily focused on fresh foods that we take for granted in this country, there are many waste products that can be utilised in the health sector—produce that might otherwise have been thrown out or ploughed back into the land or left rotting on the trees after a bad season. The growers' roundtable gave local growers an insight into supplying their produce to expanding global markets in the health and wellness sector.

Australian produce has a great reputation for being high quality, clean and green. It is logical to source homegrown products in Australia as a possible supply chain. The bioextraction of such produce may lead to a future niche industry in Australia to supply the health and wellness market. Grapeseed extracts spring to mind, as well as extracts from avocados and tomatoes, the waste from broccoli and the oil extracted from fresh orange skins. These are just some examples. As manufacturing operations decline in Australia, we need to look for ever-evolving innovative markets to supply with our products to enable our economy to continue to grow.

I believe strong connections were established between roundtable participants who may be able to add value to their operations by supplying such agricultural extracts. It will be an exciting and rewarding time if we can forge local linkages between producers within my electorate through the extraction process with the purchasing arms of global companies that provide the products that many Australians now use. The morning was highly successful, with great opportunities, and I see the value extending to other Australian producers and growers—and the opportunities will continue to evolve.