With a near-record harvest approaching, Australia's food and freight supply chains remain vulnerable to fuel disruptions, highlighting the urgent need to strengthen fuel security and regional resilience.
GrainGrowers CEO Shona Gawel said the Government's commitment to develop a strategic fuel reserve and increase mandatory stockholdings was a positive step, but the focus must be on ensuring fuel can reach the industries and communities that need it during times of disruption.
It comes as GrainGrowers this week made a submission to the Federal Government’s Strengthening Australia's Fuel Security and Resilience consultation.
"Fuel security is fundamentally about economic resilience and keeping essential industries operating when supply chains come under pressure," Ms Gawel said.
"Grain growers are key contributors to Australia’s food security and reliable access to fuel is critical from planting, right through to harvest and transportation beyond the farm gate.
“Which means these disruptions don't just affect growers; they can impact supply chains and consumers right across the entire economy.”
As part of its submission, GrainGrowers is calling for:
- Prioritising diesel within the strategic fuel reserves, as a critical input for agricultural production.
- Both national and targeted regional emergency fuel release mechanisms to be incorporated into the Australian Fuel Security Reserve, recognising that localised. shortages can occur even when national fuel supplies remain adequate.
- Developing a National Strategic Fuel Resilience Framework to Guide Regional Fuel Reserve Decisions.
- Ensuring strategic fuel reserves are on Australian soil.
"As we saw when the war in the Middle East began, regional Australia feels the brunt of supply disruptions first due to long supply chains, limited storage capacity and geographic isolation," Ms Gawel said.
“There is still a great deal of uncertainty around the Middle East as harvest approaches and we cannot afford to be complacent in the future. Government needs the ability to respond not only to national emergencies, but also to regional fuel shortages before they affect food production and essential freight movements.
GrainGrowers is also calling for improved monitoring of fuel availability through-out the supply chain including fuel distributors.
"You can't manage what you can't measure," Ms Gawel said.
"Many growers source fuel directly from distributors, meaning shortages can emerge long before they appear at the bowser.
"Better visibility across the supply chain would provide an early warning system to help identify and address shortages before they affect food production and freight movements."
ENDS