Prices, Better Access for Seafood Thanks to Grant

Media Release - 24 May 2009

Premium Prices, Better Access for Seafood Thanks to Grant

PREMIUM prices and better market access for Australian seafood: those will be among the benefits from a new program announced today.

Seafood Services Australia (SSA) Managing Director Mr Ted Loveday said a comprehensive branding scheme for Australian seafood would help secure domestic and international markets.

This followed an announcement by Federal Fisheries Minister, Mr Tony Burke, of funding support of $148,875 for an SSA project, @@Building Capacity to Promote Australian Seafood – @@Australian Made”, under the Australian Government’s Promoting Australian Produce Program.

@@Australian seafood businesses will be well placed to achieve premium prices and protect access to domestic and international seafood markets under this project to promote the environmental credentials of Australian seafood.

‘This capacity building project, to be managed by Seafood Services Australia, has two key elements.

@@First, the highly visible and nationally recognised @@Australian Made and Australian Grown” branding and promotion platform will be utilized to develop an @@Australian Grown Seafood” representation to promote Australian seafood.

@@Second, the project will build the capacity of the Australian seafood industry to promote its world leading environmental management practices.”

@@It will build the capacity of Australian seafood producers -- both wild harvest and aquaculture producers -- processors, distributors, retailers and exporters to use the ‘Australian Grown’ promotion platform and associated brand recognition to promote and differentiate their product in the Australian domestic market and in international markets.

@@Also, it will help protect access to international markets by providing international seafood buyers and consumers with assurance that Australian product is sourced from sustainably managed fisheries. This market requirement is becoming increasingly important in several key Australian export markets, particularly the European Union and United States.”

Mr Loveday said that Australia’s world leading achievements in fisheries sustainability have been drastically under recognised.

@@Quite frankly, the Australian industry and governments have spent many years and hundreds of millions of dollars getting our fisheries onto a sustainable footing. Australian fisheries now operate under the most stringent environmental framework for fisheries in the world,” Mr Loveday said.

@@The Australian Government’s support for this fisheries branding initiative is just what is needed to enable the nation to capitalise on the world class environmental credentials of Australian seafood.

@@This project will be strongly welcomed by seafood businesses across Australia. It will enable them to receive recognition for their environmental achievements and to capitalize on that in the domestic and export market places,” Mr Loveday said.

More information: Mr Ted Loveday 0427 323 663

Issued: Sun May 31 18:17:01 EST

Reference-id: SSANEWS0258

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