GROWERS will benefit from WA wheat exporter Plum Grove's recent success in securing a $17,000 grant from the Federal Government.
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It was announced last week that Plum Grove was one of six successful recipients in the final round of the Federal Wheat Export Technical Market Support Grants Program.
Federal Agriculture Minister Joe Ludwig, who visited WA last week, said Plum Grove would be able to target opportunities in new and existing overseas markets such as those in Africa, the Middle East and South East Asia.
"This funding will assist Plum Grove to establish new sales with new export partners and increase Australian exports to current markets," Minister Ludwig said.
"All grant recipients are innovative and emerging wheat exporters who combine new ideas with the high quality of Australian wheat to break into new niche markets."
Plum Grove general manager Fred Guimbeau agreed and said the point of the scheme was to find new markets and increase the understanding of Australian wheat within those markets.
"The grant gives us the opportunity to bring industry people from overseas to WA and to send our people to those mills overseas," Mr Guimbeau said.
"It will allow our potential clients to gain a better understanding and it will allow us to understand our client's requirements.
"We're looking at being able to set up a technical conference and the grant will also help us to send some of our wheat samples overseas."
Australian wheat was under-represented in Africa and the Middle East and the grant gave Plum Grove greater backing to move into those markets.
"Africa and the Middle East in particular have had small to medium exposure to Australian grain but never in a consistent manner," Mr Guimbeau said.
"The grant will allow us to develop those relationships over a long period of time.
"We can help them with their technical understanding of Australian wheat, look into milling functions and quality, break into new markets and look at new end user demand."
Member for Fremantle Melissa Parke welcomed the announcement as a bonus for local business and producers.
"I am delighted to see a Fremantle business being recognised for its cutting edge approach to wheat marketing," Ms Parke said.
"Fremantle has a proud history as a focal point of WA's export success and it's fantastic that a local business is pioneering an approach that will assist WA wheat producers to expand into new markets."
Mr Guimbeau described her comments as very true in the WA sense.
"We're trying to be very innovative with the products we're presenting to both growers and our other markets," he said.
"We're fulfilling new niches and trying to offer something new which has stemmed from the deregulation of the Australian wheat market."
The Wheat Export Technical Market Support Grants Program is an Australian Government initiative to help new and smaller scale exporters build long-term relationships with international customers.
The program was one of a number of Government initiatives under the $9.37 million transitional assistance package to help the Australian wheat industry transition to the competitive marketing arrangements introduced in 2008.
The $9.37m assistance package contributed financial support to Wheat Exports Australia to ensure it operated effectively during the change to its new arrangements and funding for the collection and dissemination of market information on wheat production, exports and availability by the ABS and ABARE with the first reports released in February 2009.
The assistance package also allowed 52 information sessions to take place which attracted more than 1200 growers and were held between August 1 and September 23, 2008.
International briefing sessions were held in major Australian wheat markets including Japan, South-East Asia, the Middle East and New Zealand as a result of the package.
Funding of $200,000 each financial year for three years from 2008-09 was also provided for grants of up to $60,000 under the Wheat Export Technical Market Support Grants Program and funding was also made available to Grain Trade Australia to finalise the voluntary industry code of conduct, which was mailed to grain growers in early November 2009.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission also received funding for the development and approval of access undertakings by providers of port terminal facilities that sought export accreditation.
Wheat production in WA in 2008-09 was valued at $2.5 billion and individual companies could access up to $60,000 over the life of the program.
More than $330,000 in matched funding was provided under rounds one and two of the program.
Other applicants that were approved for funding along with Plum Grove included Agfarm, NSW, Australian Grain Link, NSW, Pentag Commodities, Queensland, Agracom, NSW and Visionrich, Victoria.
