It appears that not everyone in the Dairy industry in Queensland is behind the Fair Go Dairy Scheme as ADPF looks to quash the ACCC decision
Following a 6-month process, the ACCC granted the Queensland Dairyfarmers’ Organisation’s (QDO) Fair Go Dairy scheme authorisation to go ahead with their launch campaign scheduled for June 2021.
However, the QDO has been blocked by the Australian Dairy Products Federation (ADPF) as that body has lodged an application with the Australian Competition Tribunal seeking to set aside the ACCC’s determination authorising the Fair Go Dairy scheme to operate.
QDO is an advocacy organisation representing the interests of dairy farmers across Queensland, and is very disappointed with this unforeseen opposition to their scheme.
QDO is a not-for-profit organisation with voluntary dairy farmer membership and its Fair Go Dairy scheme gave Queensland dairy farmers access to minimum price payments in 2021/22 of 73.8 cents per litre.
Once processors joined the scheme, QDO granted a licence to use the ‘Fair Go Dairy’ logo on qualifying dairy products.
These products had to contain at least 80% unprocessed milk that was produced by Queensland dairy cows and purchased from a Queensland dairy farmer for more than or at a price QDO considered ‘fair’.
If the scheme was successful in Queensland, producers from other states were eager to come on board to future where prices would be set by dairy farmers, and not be dictated to by milk processing companies.
The objection lodged by ADPH, is from an organisation that packs plenty of financial backing with members including processors, traders and marketers of Australian dairy products.
The ADPH members get their hands on and process more than 90% of Australian milk volumes and supply dairy products for both domestic and export markets.
Taking on these giants of the dairy industry will certainly delay the Fair Go Dairy launch or even blow it out of the water entirely, such are the resources the ADPH can muster with anything it is displeased with and wants to block.
It is obvious the ADPH is not satisfied with the outcome of the 6 months review and then affirmative decision by the ACCC to allow the Fair Go Dairy Scheme to launch and offer its service to dairy farmers.
The decision by the ACCC to grant QDO authorisation is in the short term debunked for now, and it means opening up murkier legal waters now that the Australian Competition Tribunal must review the ACCC decision and grant or dismiss on its own grounds.
It is unclear how long the review process will take, but what is clear is this major setback to an alternative milk marketing scheme places the QDO on hold for the proposed launch campaign.
Eric Danzi, the QDO Executive Officer added this to the saga, “To say that this further delay is disappointing is a major understatement.
“Why is the ADPF so determined to block Fair Go Dairy which is aimed at providing transparency to consumers about the origin of milk and whether farmers are paid a fair price.
Eric asks, “In who’s interest are the ADPF working. As an organisation funded and operated by their members being the processors of milk products in Australia.
“Their Queensland members are Norco, Lactalis (who owns the Pauls brand) and Bega (who owns the Dairy Farmers brand). They typically represent the big milk processing companies.
“However, all the smaller dairy processing companies in Queensland including Maleny Dairy, Maleny Cheese, Kenilworth Dairies, 4Real and Mungalli Biodynamic are not members.
“So, as it would appear, by their membership and support of ADPF, the larger milk processing companies in Queensland being Norco, Lactalis (Pauls) and Bega (Dairy Farmers) do not want to support consumers having increased transparency over the products they are buying.
“It is most displeasing that these companies would have such a view.” Eric Danzi, the QDO Executive Officer concluded.
