South-East Fishing Industry Grateful for Government Pandemic Support
South-East Fishing Industry Grateful for Government Pandemic Support
Assistant Fisheries Minister Duniam today announced that $10m, or 2/3rds of all levies collected by the Australian Government for the management of Commonwealth fisheries, will be waived.
The South East Trawl Fishing Industry Association (SETFIA), Small Pelagic Fishery Industry Association (SPFIA) and Southern Shark Industry Alliance (SSIA) thank Assistant Minister Duniam for the Government’s support during this challenging time.
The three fisheries represented by these three associations supply more than 30,000 tonnes of finfish into South-East Australia and Tasmania – the largest supply of local wild-caught fresh fish into Australia.
Combined these three fisheries pay around $6.8m a year to the Federal Government. Today’s announcement means that around $4.5m of this will not be collected or refunded in a show of direct support for the industry.
Mr Simon Boag, EO of the South East Trawl Fishing Industry Association (SETFIA) explained,
“I have thanked the Assistant Minister for the Government’s support of our industry; it is a game changer. During our conversation we stressed the importance of keeping fish mongers, food markets and fish and chip shops open because without them Australians will have to turn to imported fish supporting other countries. We believe he heard us.”
Mr Boag added,
“More than ever there is a need for Australia to feed itself and not rely on imported seafood. We have had positive conversations with supermarkets, and we hope that they will focus on the true value of purchasing a wider range of fresh wild-caught Australia fish”.
“Increased demand for red meat has seen prices skyrocket – there has never been a better time to eat fresh healthy Australian wild-caught fish because it remains fantastic value. Supermarkets and fish mongers do a great job of labelling fish so it is easy to find fish that was caught in Australia. This supports Australian fishermen.”
Contact:
Simon Boag
Executive Officer SETFIA
simonboag@setfia.org.au
0428-141591
Links:
Release from Assistant Minister Duniam https://duniam.com.au/mccormack-birmingham-littleproud-and-duniam-securing-freight-access-for-australian-agricultural-fisheries-exporters/
https://setfia.org.au/
https://www.facebook.com/AusSPFIA/
https://www.facebook.com/southernsharkinsudtryalliance/
Article source: https://mailchi.mp/setfia.org.au/10m-levy-relief-2664057