Bayer, Nufarm Sound Alarm on Food Security
Agriculture giant Bayer is urging the Albanese government of Australia to streamline approvals for genetically modified crops, while Nufarm has lashed out at China’s “unfair trade practices” as Australia tackles food security issues, reports Brad Thompson at the Australian Financial Review.
Bayer expects food security to remain a hot topic in 2023 as Russia steps up its war on Ukraine and the latest COVID-19 outbreak in China again casts doubt on the supply of vital farm chemicals.
Both Bayer and ASX-listed Nufarm have warned the government that the parlous state of the manufacturing sector in Australia is a threat to food security, with Nufarm saying a growing reliance on China for farm chemicals has created a sovereign manufacturing risk.
German multinational Bayer has doubled down on farm chemical formulation in Australia after global supply chain disruptions, and wants a greater emphasis on science to help counter climate change, crop disease and other factors affecting food production and domestic prices.
An Albanese government-instigated parliamentary inquiry into food security is considering submissions from Bayer, Nufarm and other big players in agriculture as export markets queue up to secure one of the biggest wheat crops ever produced by Australia.
Read more at the Australian Financial Review.
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