Flooding may lead to supply chain disruption, fruit and veg price hike

Aussie consumers are being warned of further supply chain disruption and a potential fruit and vegetable price hike after flooding impacted key agricultural areas in NSW, Victoria and Tasmania.  

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who has been touring flood-affected areas in Victoria and NSW,said the continuing rain will drive prices higher. 

“Tragically, there had been such a good harvest anticipated in wheat, in fruit and vegetables, in so many of the products that the Victorian food basin … is such a rich area, as well as in areas like poultry,” Albanese told ABC Melbourne. 

“There’s no doubt that there will be an impact … and the impact will feed into higher prices, most unfortunately at a time when inflation has already been rising.” 

Agriculture Minister Murray Watt, who joined the prime minister to assess the flood damage around Forbes in central western NSW, told a media conference agricultural regions had been “very badly impacted by the repeated floods”. 

“It’s likely that these floods are going to have a cost of living impact on people because of the impact of prices of fruit and vegetables,” Watt said. 

The minister said the federal government is working out what financial impact the flooding will have on agricultural production.  

“I think that we can expect that it is going to be a very large dollar impact,” Watt said. 

The federal and state governments are also discussing extra support for flood-hit farmers.  

For Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, there would “almost certainly” be food production impacts stemming from the flooding.  

 “This is the food bowl of our state and the food bowl of our nation, whether it be in terms of fruit and veg and cropping more broadly,” he told reporters.  

Farmer Associations’ Response 

As floodwaters continue to rise in Victoria’s north, farmers are counting the costs, especially in the food bowl around Shepparton. 

Victorian Farmers Federation horticulture president Nathan Free said fruits such as apples, pears, peaches, nectarines and plums have all been badly hit. 

“If they get flooded now, you possibly may not have a crop the coming season,” Free told AAP News. 

The farmers federation president Emma Germano said it was too early to gauge the full effect on food availability and prices, but the flooding will cause significant supply chain disruption. 

“There will be significant impact and disruption coming through our supply chain in the coming months,” she told AAP. 

While farmers in Victoria had been expecting a bumper winter crop, analysts are now saying they now face volume and quality downgrades due to the extreme weather conditions. 

In its latest winter crop forecast, RaboBank found a significant impact on yields of low-lying crops with many submerged in central and northern Victoria. 

Flood-stricken parts in both NSW and Victoria has led to washed-out fields and crops that cannot be harvested. 

Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association chief executive Hugh Christie flagged the destruction was significant across key farming areas in the state’s north and northwest. 

There was also flooding in other areas including the northeast and parts of the Central Highlands. 

He said the full extent of the damage will only become apparent as levels recede and the impact of water logging on the emergence of crops is shown in coming weeks. 

With news from AAP.