NT’s largest mango operation facing $14m loss due to worker shortage

THE owners of Australia’s largest mango farm operation in the NT say they have lost about $14m worth in lost crops this year because they didn’t have enough workers.

• Senator Sam McMahon lashes out at Chief Minister Michael Gunner over NT seasonal worker woes
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THE owners of Australia’s largest mango farm operation in the NT say they have lost about $14m worth in lost crops this year because they didn’t have enough workers.

Territory mango farmers Nino and Tina Niceforo, who have mango farms across Darwin, Katherine and Mataranka, said the shortage of seasonal workers this year hit them extremely hard, costing them millions.

“It’s cost us around $14m, but it’s not just us, I know there are other Territory farmers out there who have been struggling as well,” Mr Niceforo.

NT mango grower Nino Niceforo. Picture: Supplied

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“It would have been a big help to be able to quarantine our seasonal workers on farm, but the NT government didn’t want to budge on that issue.

“I must have called the Chief Minister’s office almost every day at one stage while trying to arrange a face-to-face meeting about this issue, but they shut us down.

“It was extremely disappointing considering the mango industry brings about $130m to the NT economy each year.”

It comes after the first charter flight of 150 Pacific seasonal workers recently arrived in Queensland, where the state government has allowed workers to quarantine at the farm.

In the NT, seasonal workers from Vanuatu are still not allowed to quarantine on farm and need to spend 14 days in the Howard Springs facility at the cost of $2500 per person. This cost is paid for by industry.

NT Mango Industry Association president Leo Skliros says the inability to quarantine workers on farm had frustrated many local growers. Picture: Che Chorley

Chief Minister Michael Gunner said the quarantine arrangements for international arrivals was not his decision to make.

Mr Gunner said the responsibility lay with the federal government, national cabinet and Australian Health Protection Principal Committee.

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NT Mango Industry Association president Leo Skliros said the inability to quarantine workers on farm had frustrated many local growers.

“I know this has been a year many of our growers would just like to forget,” he said.

“Quarantining on farm isn’t just about the Pacific seasonal workers, we could have also used that policy to bring in more interstate workers to fill the labour shortages.”

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