NFF rejects farm sustainability star rating proposal
A proposal for a five-star rating system based on how sustainably farm products have been produced has been rejected by the nation’s peak agricultural advocacy body.
A proposal for a five-star rating system based on how sustainably farm products have been produced has been slammed by the National Farmers’ Federation.
Independent Australian think-tank Blueprint Institute pitched the system in its sustainable agriculture report, arguing farmers need “more than applause” as an incentive to adopt more sustainable farming practices that can often be financially difficult to implement.
Clearly displayed on product packaging, the proposed Green Rating of Whole-Farm Sustainability would be designed to help “consumers make an informed choice aligned to their values, ultimately driving meaningful change across the entire sector,” Blueprint acting chair Lachlan Crombie said.
National Farmers’ Federation president Hamish McIntyre said the NFF had spent years trying to reduce sustainability reporting burdens, and that “a new, simplistic rating on a packet does the opposite - it misrepresents agriculture and adds cost to farmers”.
“Lived experience shows us while consumers express the best intentions to pay a premium for ‘sustainable’ claims, price almost always wins over and any premium rarely reaches the farmgate,” he said.
Mr McIntyre said introducing a star rating that bypasses current agreed science-based indicators, governance, testing, risk analysis and interoperability would be “irresponsible and misleading”.
“Right now, cost of living trumps everything for consumers. Majority of demand for sustainability reporting is coming from retailers, regulators and export markets that need credible evidence, not a five-star graphic,” he said.
Rabobank senior animal proteins analyst Angus Gidley-Baird said while some producer costs involved with improving sustainability could be offset with productivity gains and efficiency, some of it could not.
“Low emissions, or carbon-neutral labelling, allows consumers to be informed and make a choice around that product, but is it generating additional value into the system? I don't know,” he said.
“Another challenge is that a lot of this stuff is evolving … if you come up with a system to label something, and then new methods or new information that is generated becomes available, how do you reconcile that (in the system)?”
Blueprint’s report acknowledged farmer and industry group concerns about the potential data collection burden, but also heard feedback of a strong desire for a system that recognised the significant work already being done by farmers in the sustainability space.
The proposal would be initially introduced as a voluntary scheme, before later becoming mandatory, with an independent statutory body responsible for designing and evolving the GROWS rating formula, it said.
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