Rule change turns up price heat in exporters’ ‘mango sauna’

afr.com:

Queensland mango growers say they will be priced out of the lucrative Japanese market by revised export regulations, claiming extra red tape will be a “wrecking ball” for the multi-million dollar sector.

While the federal Agriculture Department allowed government officials to approve mangoes for export during the COVID-19 pandemic, it has now returned to the pre-COVID regime that requires growers to pay for Japanese inspectors to come to Australia to inspect fruit throughout the season.

Brisbane mango exporter Alastair Scott at his Rocklea facility, which has been upgraded with a new $1.5 million “mango sauna” to kill fruit flies. Glenn Campbell

Marketing agents and growers – who turned to the Japanese market after China went cold on Australian exports, including mangoes – say this will push up the price of a crate of mangoes by between $4 and $9 when the new season starts in September.

They also believe it will threaten attempts to gain a foothold in Japan using the R2E2 mango variety, which is larger and more robust but not as popular in the Australian domestic market.

Brisbane-based fruit exporter and Hannay Douglas managing director Alastair Scott said it would cost about $29,000 a month to bring in Japanese inspectors to supervise the vapour heat treatment (which kills fruit flies) before export.

Authorised industry officers from Australia would also have to be employed to be present with Japanese inspectors to enable proper export certification.

“This new work plan [from the Department of Agriculture] is a wrecking ball for the viability of Australian mango exports to Japan,” Mr Scott told AFR Weekend.

“This work plan fails the exporters and growers and rural communities. There will be mango trees pulled and job