March 14, 2014
Australia to boost grain exports to Asia
About 70% of Australian grain exports are sold into Asia, with flour millers and stockfeed manufacturers as big buyers, making the country's grain and oilseed industry to fight off increasing competition in its most important export market of Asia.
Chief executive of Grain Trade Australia, Geoff Honey, says Canada, the US, Russia and the Black Sea region are all putting huge emphasis on exporting grain to Asia, putting pressure on prices.
"What we need to do is to be able to demonstrate that the product that we have is a better product than where the competition is, because there's no question those competing forces will continue to focus on Asia," Honey said.
Honey says a grain industry conference, held in Singapore this week, discussed the Australian grain industry code of practice, which will become mandatory for all Grain Trade Australia members from July 1 this year.
Nick Goddard, the executive director of the Australian Oilseeds Federation, says it's important the Australian grain and oilseed industry is well represented in Asia, where the former Australian Wheat Board previously performed a key marketing role.
Goddard says more than half of Australia's recent exports of oilseeds, like rapeseed, have been sold into Asia, where there's a growing market for animal feed.