The Queensland Government has allocated $81.6 million over the three years 2021-22 to 2023-24 to provide financial support to irrigators, including funding for the Horticulture Irrigation Pricing Rebate Scheme.

A 15 per cent discount has been applied to calculate prices for all irrigation customers supplied by Sunwater and Seqwater, with a further discount of 35 per cent to be made available for horticultural growers through the Horticulture Irrigation Pricing Rebate Scheme.

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Growcom Fair Work Legislation Update 

The recent Growcom & Focus HR Fair Work Legislation Webinar recording can be viewed and heard on this link:  Fair Work Legislation Update Webinar (Friday, August 6 2021)

On completion of the Webinar, Focus HR provided the following resources:
Casual vs Permanent vs Full-time information sheet which can be downloaded here. 

Employee vs Contract assessment tool which can be downloaded here

A large chorus of support from Australian growers and industry bodies after news that an Ag Visa is significantly closer to reality.

Australia's peak horticulture industry bodies have welcomed the announcement of an Agriculture Visa, aimed at boosting long-term workforce numbers, which have been reducing even before the government closed the international borders at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. After years of lobbying from industry groups and the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF), the Federal Government has finally committed to delivering on the visa, even though a lot of the details still have to be worked out. In making the announcement, the government admitted that regulations to enable the creation of the Australian Agriculture visa will be in place by the end of September 2021, but the operation of the visa will depend on negotiations with partner countries.

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Queensland Government support Pacific Labour Scheme and Seasonal Worker Programme (PLS/SWP)

The Queensland Government continues to strongly support the PLS/SWP initiative with a $2.6 million investment in the 2021–22 financial year. This will ensure Queensland continues to assist our agriculture sector through this initiative with a dedicated program of case managers, assessment officers and oversight of quarantine compliance.

Prior to October 2020, the Queensland Government had no direct involvement or investment in the PLS/SWP programs.

Industry Updates are being held for Approved Employers, prospective Approved Employers, labour hire, accommodation providers and community services on the PLS/SWP process, as well as other initiatives to address workforce shortages in the Queensland agricultural sector. Updates are being held in various regional areas e.g. Grantham, Bundaberg, Mareeba, Innisfail. For more information on where and when an industry update is scheduled for a regional area as well as to register for one of these updates click on this link: https://daf.engagementhub.com.au/aglabour

Covid-19 financial support for employers

If you’re an employer, there is COVID-19 financial assistance available to you. Find the latest support relevant to your state or territory.

Visit the Australian Government website business.gov.au to access information on COVID-19 financial assistance and support for Australian businesses.

Native bees make a healthy honey no others make, and now we know why

It is not made by any other bee and is better for you, and now scientists know how native stingless bees make healthy honey. 

Key points:

• Scientists discovered the rare healthy sugar unique to native stingless bee honey in 2020

• The bees make it in their gut after consuming nectar high in sucrose

• Researchers are now hoping to identify crops with high sucrose nectar to increase production

Researchers at the University of Queensland in collaboration with Queensland Health Forensic and Scientific Services have uncovered the secret of trehalulose — a sugar that is only produced by the tiny insect and does not spike blood glucose levels when eaten. Nectar sugars are largely glucose, fructose, and table sugar (sucrose), not trehalulose, so the question became "were the bees finding it or making it?"

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The challenges faced by Australian exporters during the COVID-19 pandemic

Customers around the world want to continue to buy Australian fruit and vegetables, but currently, there are many challenges getting the product to them, according to the Export Council of Australia.

Hosting an export supply chain discussion panel at the Queensland Horticulture Export Congress, held in conjunction with Hort Connections, Chair Dianne Tipping explained that logistics have proven to be a challenge for many growers and exporters during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is now affecting its second winter season.

"We have great agriculture, great vegetables and great fruit - but we are challenged at the moment," she said. "We do need to remember that people want to buy our product from Australia, but it is the challenge of how do we get it to them, quickly and still fresh. We cannot afford to lose our export markets, because there is always someone ready to pounce when we don't go there and sell our product. Export is vital for Australia and our economy, and we do produce more than what we can eat. So, if we don't grow them and sell them overseas we lose jobs as well."

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Australian Food Cold Chain Council urges more transparency, improved training for workers.

In Australia, an industry-wide training program has been released, aimed at improving the credentials of those responsible for the integrity and safety of Australia's chilled and frozen food supply. While launched in February this year, the code was given its first public outing at Hort Connections 2021 in Brisbane in June. 

The program, the Cold Chain Professional Development Series, is in response to cold chain losses from temperature abuse which have been identified by recent national studies sponsored by the Commonwealth Government. The code has been developed by the Australian Food Cold Chain Council (AFCCC). The first of five Cold Food Codes has been released, with the first online training program of its kind for those who work at the many levels in the cold chain, in transport, distribution centres, loading docks, food industries and retail outlets.

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INTERNATIONAL

New Zealand

Controversial change to allow irradiation treatment of imported produce. More imported fresh fruits and vegetables treated with irradiation could soon be on sale on New Zealand shelves if a rule change goes through. Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) is expected to finalise the change this month, despite the fact that 95 per cent of submissions received about it were opposed. It also acknowledged the treatment could reduce the nutritional value of produce, although it says this is minimal. But FSANZ decided irradiation was a safe and effective biosecurity tool, and will help open up export markets, bringing Australia and New Zealand into line with other countries.  
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China

Production volume of Chinese lychee in Lingshan steadily expands. Chinese lychee production areas are concentrated in the south of the county, especially in Hainan, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Fujian. These production areas produce different varieties that enter the market at different times of the year. And there are huge differences in product quality as well. Lingshan in Guangxi is one of the most famous lychee production areas in China. The lychee from Lingshan are popular in the Chinese market and all across the globe.
Fresh Plaza article June 2021

Average daily trading volume close to 10,000 tons in Changsha fruit market. Summer is the season when all kinds of fruits flood the market. Various fruits have appeared on the Chinese market, especially seasonal fruits such as lychees, watermelons, cantaloupes, and waxberries, replacing pineapples, mangoes and other fruits to become the main driver for sales. Sales continue to rise and prices are lower compared to the same period last year.
Fresh Plaza article June 2021

Chinese lychee from Guangdong have become a ‘super fruit’ in the European and US Markets. Large volumes of lychee from Guangdong are sold near and far. They are particularly popular in Europe and the USA. According to data from the General Administration Customs China (GACC), Guangdong province exported 5,902.08 tons of lychee in 2020. 

That is an increase of 72.3% in comparison to 2019. The export value also increased, by 53.4%, to a total of 118 million yuan [18.28 million USD].

This year the Guangdong lychee export volume continue to expand. Lychee from Huizhou, Huilai, and Leiling travel the globe as orders from overseas markets come pouring in.
Fresh Plaza article June 2021

Chinese farmers earn millions from livestreaming fruit on China’s TikTok
READ MORE & Livestreaming July 2021

Vietnam

First sea cargo of Vietnamese lychees arrives in the Netherlands. Approximately 6 tons of fresh lychees, harvested in the Luc Ngan District, have arrived in Rotterdam Port, after a five week sea voyage. This is the first shipment by sea to the EU that was conducted by LTP Import Export B.V. (the Netherlands) through a packaging technology.
Hanoi Times article August 2021

Vietnamese lychee held up in customs, while China enjoys abundant lychee harvest. This is the time of year when Vietnam exports large volumes of lychee to China, but the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has made customs procedures more complicated. Most border ports do not allow trucks to pass through. Instead, the products spend up to several days at the customs office before they are cleared. "These procedures take much longer than regular procedures, which is not good for easily-spoiled fruit such as lychee. However, we trust that these measures will only last until the outbreak of Covid-19 is fully under control, and the delays will then be quickly resolved," said Mr. Cheng.
Fresh Plaza article June 2021

Vietnamese lychee campaign very successful. In mid-June, during the peak of the fourth Covid-19 wave, up to 100,000 tons of lychee were sold, sourced from Bac Giang Province. Bac Giang’s lychee growers have had the best harvest ever, but this is also the first time they have faced a pandemic. In early May, 28,100 hectares of Bac Giang lychees were about to be harvested when the fourth wave of Covid-19 broke out. Lychee farmers were under great pressure, having to harvest 180,000 tons of lychee within just two months.
Fresh Plaza article July 2021

Taiwan

New Zealand suspends imports of mango, lychee from Taiwan. Discovery of live fruit fly larvae at border prompts authorities to pause imports. New Zealand’s Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) has suspended imports of fresh lychees and mangoes from Taiwan after authorities found live fruit fly larvae in a shipment of the fruits. MPI found the larvae in a consignment on 18 June and confirmed it as oriental fruit fly the following day. The fly has been found at the border before but never elsewhere within New Zealand. Native to Asia, oriental fruit flies lay eggs in fruit and the maggots then feed on the fruit, causing it to rot and making it unmarketable.

Radio New Zealand reported imports of lychees and mangoes from Taiwan that are vapour heat treated have been suspended while an investigation takes place. Shipments arriving at the border will be held, with the option of destroying the produce or shipping it back.

Taiwan to ask New Zealand to lift import ban on mangoes. Taipei, June 22 (CNA) Taiwan's Council of Agriculture (COA) will ask the New Zealand government to lift its import ban on Taiwanese mangoes, an official said Tuesday, arguing that a problem with fruit flies in a recent shipment from Taiwan did not affect the mangoes. 

New Zealand's Ministry for Primary Industries said it held up a shipment containing Taiwanese mangoes and lychees at its border last Friday due to a problem with live fruit fly larvae, Radio New Zealand (RNZ) reported Tuesday.
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Mexico

Lychee harvest at door in Sinaloa, Mexico (June 23, 2021). They expect a productive drop due to drought in the entity, CULIACÁN, Sinaloa.  The lychee harvest begins in the receivership of Eldorado, Culiacán with great uncertainty due to the small size and production drop of more than 30% due to the lack of development of the fruit due to the drought that is registered in the entity. The fleeting harvest of only two months, lasts the harvest of the 4 varieties of the exotic fruit, which is mostly sent to the markets of the United States, Canada, even Japan.

Doctor Gaspar Urquidez, producer and marketer explained that many orchards do not have an irrigation system or wells to attend to the trees, where the productive fall will be presented with greater emphasis.

He recalled that in Sinaloa there are about 250 hectares of lychee orchards, with a normal season production between 400 and 450 thousand tons, in seven municipalities Escuinapa, Concordia, Mazatlán, Mocorito, Culiacán, Guasave, mostly in Navolato and the Eldorado union, Culiacan.

"The drought in a certain way had damage of different levels in all varieties, but the cold was beneficial."

He clarified that the cuts of the fruit will be massive, in about two more weeks waiting for it to develop better. But if you despair, you cut from the first day of ripening, then you sacrifice the size, if you cut on the fourth, fifth day, then it will improve there”.

Seasonal overview (Living Lychee July 2021)

TABLELAND, NORTH QLD & NORTH QLD COASTAL
The Tablelands received a lot of rain in the middle of April which unsettled some lychee orchards. Second flushes emerged and the trees did not settle down nor harden-off. It’s uncertain what will happen next. 
In Far North Coastal Qld it has been a wet year so far with only a couple of mornings with cool weather getting down to 12c.

CENTRAL QLD
The weather in Central Qld was fairly friendly for flower initiation, with warm (for winter) spells, broken by quite cool snaps with temperatures as low as 5c.

SOUTH EAST QLD
The two previous winters in the Bundaberg region have been very dry, but this season has been kinder. 96mm’s of rain fell in June & July with a number of 5c cold snaps triggering the lychee trees into flower emergence.

Kwai Mai Pink trees in the South East Sunshine Coast area are budding up well, anything that was trying to push out a flush has turned to bud after the cold night time temperatures in June, July & August.

NEW SOUTH WALES
Regular showers in the Coffs Harbour area during winter reduced the need to irrigate, some light frosts chilled things down and there was very little late flush on the trees.