Wendy Askew (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Next time you're at the supermarket picking up a punnet of berries, look at the label. If they're Driscoll's, it's quite likely they are from a farm in northern Tasmania. I was pleased to have the opportunity to visit the Mountford Berries farm near Longford with my colleague Senator Jane Hume during her recent trip to Tasmania. After initially raising livestock, the Mackinnon family pivoted to horticulture 10 years ago, and the family is now one of the biggest Tasmanian suppliers in the berry category across Australia. Hugh, his son, Roly, and his daughter-in-law, Gemma, grow some of the freshest, sweetest strawberries and raspberries in the country and are looking at new berry categories to add to their rotation.

Mountford Berries are a great success story that has been assisted, especially during the pandemic years, by access to seasonal workers through the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme, the PALM scheme. They are a PALM Scheme success story because they have made the system work for them. The Mackinnon family have built on-farm accommodation for their workers, and they take responsibility for them while employing them on their farm. They also work cooperatively with other farms to maximise opportunities for their workers.

During our visit, Hugh highlighted the many cost-of-living pressures impacting the seasonal workforce, including fluctuating foreign exchange rates and the increasing cost of food, accommodation, transportation and airfares, as well as a tax rate of 15 per cent on every dollar they earn. While Mountford Berries continue to utilise PALM scheme workers, there are fears that many agribusinesses are turning away from the scheme. New data from the National Farmers Federation has shown an 11 per cent drop in the number of PALM scheme workers employed in Australia. Farmers and labour-hire companies are turning away from the scheme because of the high demands of regulation and compliance. With the Albanese Labor government adding red tape and extra regulatory compliance to the scheme, it's being shunned by the very industry it was set up to support, and Tasmania's agricultural industry may well suffer as a result.