‘Patriotic Choice’ Needed: SPC Cuts Canned Fruit Orders As Cheap Imports Dominate

Assorted canned fruit and vegetables made by SPC Ardmona pictured in Brisbane, Australia, on Feb. 5, 2014. (AAP Image/Dan Peled)

Australia’s fruit industry has encouraged shoppers to make the “patriotic choice” after food manufacturer SPC announced it would slash its canned fruit production as cheaper imported alternatives eat into market share.

The Shepparton, Victoria-based SPC will reduce its orders of Australian peaches and pears by 40 percent for the upcoming season, and says it hopes produce volumes can normalise in 2026.

The food manufacturer said pressures around the cost of living have forced consumers to favour cheaper products from places like South Africa and China.

SPC, which has been processing local fruit in the Goulburn Valley for more than 100 years, also noted that demand for dearer Australian fruit has waned.

“Growers have been advised about changes to our sourcing of peaches and pears to give them as much notice as possible ahead of next season,” they said in a statement to The Epoch Times.

“To keep pace with changing consumer trends, we are constantly exploring opportunities to increase demand for high-quality Australian-grown products across different categories and pack formats,” they said.

Farmers Call For More Support

In response, Fruit Growers Victoria (FGV), the peak body for the state’s pome fruits industry, has called for more support for locally-grown produce.

The organisation said it wanted to see protection at a government level from cheap imports, and for country-of-origin labelling laws to help shoppers make a “patriotic choice.”

FGV grower services manager, Michael Crisera, said the future of Australian farming was hanging in the balance.

“SPC is the only Australian-grown fruit-preserving company left, and if we continue to lose domestic market share to imports, we may never see processing fruit grown in Australia again,” Mr. Crisera told The Epoch Times.

“Shoppers’ only option may only be imports in the future if we don’t choose to buy Australian fruit now.”

A vendor arranges fresh fruit at his roadside stall in the central business district of Sydney on July 2, 2013. (Photo by Saeed Khan/ AFP via Getty Images)

He noted that farmers will be forced to axe some crops.

“This adds to an already difficult time for low-margin processing fruit growers; many will be assessing their own viability and whether or not to remove their canning peach varieties and canning pear variety,” he told The Epoch Times.

“Pears have an option to be sold on the domestic market or export providing there is value in supplying those markets.”