Australia’s wine and dairy sectors push back on EU free trade talks

Aussie agriculture could lose more than $100 million each year if Australia fails to resist Europe’s push for exclusive food labelling.

Australian agriculture could lose more than $100 million each year if Australia fails to resist Europe’s push for exclusive use of food names such as feta and prosecco.

Geographic indications (GI) are a key point of contention in negotiations between Australia and the European Union for a free trade deal, which is coming to the pointy end of negotiations.

The EU has provided a list of more than 200 food and drink GIs it wants to prevent Australian producers from using. If agreed to, it would see at least $100 million wiped off the sector’s value overnight.

The biggest loser would be the Australian dairy sector, with the EU listing dozens of geographic names as a bargaining chip.

The Australian Dairy Farmers (ADF) group estimate between $A77 and $A95 million will be lost by domestic cheesemakers per annum for the first three years of any EU-favoured trade agreement.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Senator Murray Watt. Picture: Kentos Komms

ADF president Rick Gladigau said Australia’s cheesemakers were a proud part of the nation’s multicultural heritage and should be able to use their ancestral names on their products.

“Forcing cheesemakers to change the name of their product and denying them the right to use their branding due to evoking European heritage is unacceptable,” he said.

Based in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, the Montalto family and its brand Floridia Cheese have been producing award-winning fromage for generations.

“If the EU is successful, many family-run specialty cheese manufacturers, like Floridia Cheese, will be unable to use the cheese names that they have been using for decades,” cheesemaker Mauro Montalto said.

“We would forced to rebrand our products.”

Indi MP Helen Haines recently raised concerns about the impact of GIs on the wine industry in the King Valley.

Earlier this month, Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said he would advocate for Australia’s retention of the GI monikers.

“There is definitely concern, from some quarters, about geographical indications,” he said earlier this month.

“We have expressed repeatedly that this is a very difficult issue for our producers and we think they should be able to use those terms.”