Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Ludwig, the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. Minister, late last week, a 'Save SPC' community rally was held in Shepparton, Victoria, bringing together the AMWU, community members and over a hundred local fruit growers. As you would be aware, the Goulburn Valley's largest fruit-packing company, SPC Ardmona, announced a massive 50 per cent cutback in food processing. This is the latest in a string of similar disasters for the Australian food processing industry, an industry that has suffered 12 straight months of contraction. Over 1,200 horticulture processing jobs have been lost, and 11 fruit and vegetable processors have been closed. Many of these jobs are in the Goulburn Valley, Victoria, with SPC's contribution to wages being close to $26 million within the local community alone. What action is the government taking to support local fruit growers and workers in this region?