THE Department of Agriculture and Water Resources' decision to allow grain imports for the first time in more than a decade has sparked the ire of many Australian graingrowers.
What started as an approval permit for a single load of Canadian wheat has expanded to three shipments, and the department has acknowledged it has eight applications for further grain imports that are yet to be processed. Who knows how many more will be lodged in the coming weeks and months?
We're a big country with a relatively small population. That means we are reliant on having access to international consumers and markets - especially if we want to keep growing our ag sector into the future.
With the benefit of hindsight, will the decision to import grain still seem like the right one to those involved?
In today's world, this sort of global market access has to be a two-way street. The complexity of free trade agreements shows the give and take nature of modern international trade. If we expect to export wheat, how could we completely refuse to import it?
Manildra Group says it needed to import high protein wheat because it couldn't source the grain required in Australia.
Unfortunately, without an effective and thorough stocks reporting system, it's difficult to verify the accuracy of the claim.
Perhaps stocks reporting is an issue that needs to be put back on the agenda if the importation of grain is to continue.
Related reading: Biosecurity risk top of growers' wheat import concerns
For me, the real focus when considering allowing grain imports must always be on biosecurity.
Being an island nation affords Australia an incredible agricultural advantage, as we've been able to keep out many pest species and diseases that are common across the world.
But we must not take this for granted.
If we are going to allow imported grain into Australia, then the biosecurity arrangements must be so stringent they border on the ridiculous. We simply cannot afford a single slip up, and there are no second chances if mistakes are made.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. In hindsight, would we have introduced rabbits into the country deliberately? Would the cane toad have been viewed as a sound option to control the cane beetle? And how did the snails that are so common across the state first find their way into the country?
With the benefit of hindsight, will the decision to import grain still seem like the right one to those involved?
With so much at stake, every effort needs to be made to ensure grain is all we're importing.
