UPFRONT CEO

AT the time of writing, I had resigned from my position of CEO at vegetablesWA. In parting, I wish everyone the best. I met a lot of very nice people and gained a good understanding of the industry. So thank you to those who gave me their time.

Looking forward, there are a number of issues ongoing in the industry, not the least of which are all the inquiries that will take place this year in relation to pricing and returns to farmers. Let’s all hope there will be some benefit to come from these inquiries, however we may not see that until next year. We’ve also got an ongoing issue with inflation and bank interest rates. We all know the pain it’s creating for consumers, which is curtailing the amount of cash they’ve got to spend. Interest rates look set to remain at similar levels for the majority of 2024, so short-term relief (or any relief) appears a long way down the track.

There are ongoing and new compliance issues. These also look set to continue throughout the year. Certain sectors of the horticulture community are still dealing with price increases, fertiliser costs are looking to rise again and there are other cost increases across the board.

Another issue is insurance. When you do your renewal, consider it carefully, remembering that the cost of replacing buildings in the past three to four years has increased by every bit of 40 per cent.

On the upside, Hort Connections 2024 is shaping up to be a not-to-bemissed event. Staged in Melbourne this year, and with everything that is happening in the industry today, I very, very highly recommend that all growers make every effort to get to this event. There will be close to 300 exhibitors at the event, a wide range of speakers and presenters on a range of topics and secondto-none networking opportunities. Make sure you enquire about the subsidies available to get you or your workers to Melbourne for the event.

While I will have left my post at the time you receive this publication, I am sure I will bump into many of you at agriculture-industry events. I look forward to meeting you again. Until then, stay well.