Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Boswell for his question. He was very quiet there but if I do not get to all those issues I am happy to take them on notice and provide a further response. Can I say at the outset that the coalition more broadly seem to be out of step with many in business. There are seven Australian fisheries that have been certified by the Marine Stewardship Council. The question is why. It is because the participants in those fisheries see that there is a marketing advantage to having MSC certification. The same is true for the forward-looking retailers, manufacturers like Bunnings, Simmons Timber and Kimberly-Clark, who joined with the Uniting Church and Greenpeace to support legislation to stop the trade in illegally harvested timber products. The Gillard government is committed to supporting Australian farmers and fishers to adopt sustainable and innovative practices. To continue to do so, we will increase productivity, build a resilient landscape and respond to a change in climate. The government is working with primary producer sectors to ensure that our food and fibre is produced sustainably, whether it is land, soil or water use.

The Gillard government is working with the industry to ensure sustainability and profitable production, and there is a long list of Labor achievements to that effect: the development of R&D policy; support for the industry owned bodies who conduct R&D marketing functions; Landcare; the Carbon Farming Initiative; support for farmers, who are in many ways environmental managers, in times when they are facing their greatest stress, through the provision of drought assistance; and the development of Australia's first National Food Plan. Consumers and customers want to know that our products are produced sustainably, and demonstrating that food was produced sustainably—(Time expired)