relocation issues continue

reducing our carbon footprint

8newcastle conference

mango and cherry auction

meet the 6 yec members

Bigger chassis and improved exhaust emissions!

may

052011

ISSN: 1838-7829

P: (03) 9687 1408 F: (03) 9689 8943

Warehouse K and Stores A352-358542 Footscray RdWest Melbourne VIC 3003

4

Fresh State CEO:John Roachjohn.roach@freshstate.com.au

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Distribution:Fresh State of Affairs is produced by Fresh State Ltd and is a free publication.

president’s message:

issue 05 may 201103

Welcome to the fifth edition of Fresh State of Affairs. Although the year seems to be flying by, it does appear to have settled down compared to just a few months ago when we featured the Bris-bane Floods and Cyclone Yasi in the far north of Queensland, (Japan aside). To give a perspective of the effect that Yasi had on the industry, Tony Nigro our intrepid collector of information, has written an informative article on the changing supply and price curves of the banana industry in this issue. Tony collects this information on a daily basis from banana producers and the pricing from the banana wholesales for the banana industry as part of his job for Data Fresh reporting. This information is available from the office and is also sold to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Austra-lian Bureau of Agriculture and Resource Economics and now the Reserve Bank of Australia.

The bottom line from the data is that a lot of people in the banana industry are hurt-ing as a result of Yasi and will continue to hurt for some time!

The big feature of this edition was our second Pit Stop Health check in late March. Kevin Sheedy was our guest ambassador for the day and strongly urged the com-munity to start taking care of themselves! Together with Sheedy, the Minister for Ma-

jor Projects the Hon. Dr Denis Napthine was a willing advocate for undertaking a health check and, “although he wasn’t as flex-ible as me in the torsion test”, he willingly engaged in such a worthwhile activity.

Our thanks to our partners the Royal Flying Doctors Service and GlaxoSmithKline for their support and sponsorship and to the MMA for their generous donation to the Flying Doctors!

No edition should pass without com-ment of relocation. No, we have not been informed (at the time of writing), whether we are staying at Footscray Road or moving to Epping. And yes as soon as we know, we will pass it on, although the message com-ing from members is for the Government to “just make a decision”!

The interesting point is that the real facts are starting to emerge about the relocation project. The relocation article on the next page displays the Hansard Report from Parliament the same day that the Minister supported our Pit Stop. He explains in Parliament some of the difficulties that

he inherited with the Epping project with specific reference to costs and possible implications on the members via rents.

This helps everyone to understand just a little bit more how difficult these last few

years have been for industry representatives engaging the govern-ment of the day to a cost-effective, viable and sustainable market relocation. Given that the project is under

review, we will have to wait and see if our efforts have been just a big waste of time or actually lead to the proper debate that is in all our collective interests.

In this edition we present our third article on the carbon foot print, a case study to help answer the many questions asked by readers on how these ‘things’ are applied in industry like ours; we welcome the new-est member to the Fresh State board; we put some faces to the Fresh State Young Executives; and we talk about the goings on at Australian Chamber Conference in Newcastle!

Shane SchnitzlerPresidentFresh State Ltd

Fresh State Ltd makes this magazine available on the un-derstanding the users exercise their own skill and care with respect to its use. Before relying on, or altering any business practices, users should carefully evaluate the accuracy, completeness and relevance of the information for their purpose and should obtain appropriate professional advice relevant to their particular circumstances. This magazine contains views and recommendations that do not neces-sarily reflect the views of Fresh State Ltd.

Fresh State does not in any circumstances accept respon-sibility for the accuracy or suitability or otherwise of any in-

formation published in Fresh State of Affairs. Fresh State Ltd specifically disclaims all and any liability for loss or damage of any nature whatsoever and however arising, whether due to accuracy, error or omission or any other cause.

In addition, by using the information in this magazine, each user waives and releases Fresh State, its staff and agents from any and all claims relating to the use of this document. In no event shall Fresh State Ltd be liable for any consequential damages resulting from using the information in Fresh State of Affairs.

© Fresh State Ltd 2011

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior permission from Fresh State Ltd. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to:

The EditorFresh State of Affairs MagazineMarket Box 113, 542 Footscray RoadWest Melbourne VIC 3003

Disclaimer:

2 | What’s on

3 | President’s message

4 | Relocation

12 | Recent events

20 | Mango and cherry auction

22 | Brett Collins & diary dates

24 | Upcoming conferences

26 | Q&A: Tony Pettinella

contents

21 yasi and the bananas: Queensland banana prices skyrocket post Cyclone Yasi.

18 reducing your footprint: Zespri International works at reducing their carbon footprint.

14 men’s health: Pitstop reveals bigger chassis and improved exhaust emissions!

Published by:

www.freshstate.com.au

what’s on:

10 yec profiles: Meet our 6 Young Executive Committee members.

From the president

A lot of people in the banana industry are hurting as a result of Yasi and will continue to hurt for some time.

7 mwm redevelopment: Victorian Economic and Financial Statement.

8 market hours: Looking at opening and closing times from 1841 to 2011.

shane schnitzler

04 05OF AFFAIRSre

loca

tion

:issue 05 may 2011

Some three months after the Baillieu Coalition Government announced that it was reviewing the relocation project of the Melbourne Wholesale Markets from Footscray Road to Epping, (along with many other project reviews) we still don’t know the outcome (April 21)!

Speculation is rife within the markets as to the outcome “Do we stay or do we go” but finally some of the facts about this project are starting to emerge.

A major issue from relocation’s inception back in 2004 has been the lack of infor-mation about the project and specifically about construction costs and possible in-debtedness placed on industry through rents as a result. This includes the cost of members doing their day to day business and industry’s pathway to privatisation.

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in a reasonable timeframe and at a cost that is consummate and competitative with the rest of Australia’s privatised central markets;

That members’ equity (Fresh State of Affairs # 4) has been

built up over the last 40 years and should be properly recognised;

That the cost of ‘doing business’ (rents and outgoings) must be comparable to Footscray road as a starting point and that they

are sustainable to avoid epping becoming a ‘white elephant’;

And that a strong central mar-ket is an absolute necessity for the health and wellbeing of the Victorian population.

our preferred position is to stay at Footscray road in the long term and modernising the site;

That we have been ‘forced to relocate’ against the market community’s wishes and away from a location that is near the centre of melbourne;

That there appears to have been a total lack of regard by the government of the day for such a critical industry and the market community;

That industry holds the view that government should move to privatisation of the markets

… and we still don’t know.industry has been clear in its outlook for relocation. This includes:

OF AFFAIRS issue 05 may 201106re

loca

tion

: melbourne w

holesale market redevelopm

ent:

So why have we been so concerned about the cost of construction at epping? The follow-ing extract from Parliament, as part of this government’s review, supports our concerns about costs blowouts, stating of added debt to our members’ rents and ultimately jeop-ardising privatisation and any successful transition.

Melbourne Markets: Relocation

Extract from thE Victorian ParliamEnt hansard 24 march 2011 assEmbly

Questions without Notice Pages 818 - 819

Mr CRISP (Mildura): My question is to

the Minister for Major Projects. Will the

minister provide the house with an up-

date on the Melbourne Markets reloca-

tion project?

Dr NAPTHINE (Minister for Major Proj-

ects): I thank the member for Mildura for

his question. The Melbourne market cur-

rently operates on a 33-hectare site on

Footscray Road. There are 500 fruit and

vegetable sellers, both wholesalers and

growers, 1200 retail buyers, and 100

wholesalers in the flower market that op-

erate at this site.

The Melbourne wholesale fruit vegetable

and flower markets are a major and vital

part of the Victorian economy, and it is

absolutely essential that Victoria main-

tains strong, vibrant and competitive

wholesale fruit, vegetable and flower

markets.

To understand the current situation fac-

ing the market and the government, it

is important to understand the history.

Over six years ago, in 2004, the then

Labor government announced the market

would—

Honourable members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for

Yan Yean!

Dr NAPTHINE: It announced the market

would be relocated, against the wishes of

the market community, to Epping. Indeed

it was said by the previous government—

Honourable members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for

Yan Yean is on a warning.

Dr NAPTHINE: It was said by the previous

government that the relocation would be

completed by 2010. The budget for the

relocation was $300 million. Since the

announcement we have had a merry-go-

round of ministers involved, including the

current member for Tarneit, former major

projects ministers Theo Theophanous,

John Lenders and Peter Batchelor, and

former agriculture ministers Bob Cam-

eron and the member for Ripon. However,

all those ministers failed in their promise

to deliver the market relocation. We have

had failed project relocations.

There have been significant time delays

and a massive blow-out in costs. In 2004

the project was $300 million, includ-

ing a $73 million Treasury Corporation

of Victoria loan to be repaid by market

users. In 2008-09 the costs had blown

out to $527 million, with no extra fund-

ing commitment from the then Labor

government. The increased funding was

to come—

Honourable members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! I ask the house to

come to order!

Dr NAPTHINE: The way this blow-out in

costs was funded was by increasing the

loan to the market operators —

Honourable members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for

Yan Yean is on her second warning.

Dr NAPTHINE: It was done by increasing

the loan to the market operators from

$73 million to $216 million. Recent ad-

vice from Treasury says the cost of the

project is now $670 million.

The cost of this project went from $300

million to $670 million, a massive black

hole – more than the cost of the Bendigo

hospital. We are also advised that the

$216 million loan is unsustainable – that

there will be insufficient revenue to meet

the costs involved.

Further, we are advised that as a direct

result of the failure of the former govern-

ment to deliver under the previous project

model, millions of dollars were paid to a

developer, which failed to deliver. Under

the Labor plan, under the members for

Tarneit and Ripon, we have had misman-

agement and massive cost blow-outs,

a huge black hole, a massive waste of

taxpayer funds, huge time delays and

understandable anger and frustration

among the market community.

This is a litany of failure by the previous

Labor government and the members for

Ripon and Tarneit. The market is impor-

tant to Victoria. I have visited the Foot-

scray site.

I will work with the market community

to get the best outcome for the market

community and Victorian taxpayers.

The Hansard extract is supported by a Department of Treasury and Finance Statement released in mid April prior to the Victorian State Budget being announced on 3 May 2011. It confirms our suspicions that members’ rental expenditure is being ‘negotiated’ by people who will be long gone after Epping opens and who do not understand your business nor the industry!

April 2011

This project involves relocation of mel-bourne’s wholesale fruit, vegetable and flower market to a new site in epping and its redevelopment into a modern, innovative and efficient fresh produce trading and distribution precinct. The previous government provided $218 million in funding for the project.As a result of the failure to implement the project under multiple de-livery models, in April 2009 the project was provided additional funding of $193 mil-lion, which was financed in significant part through a debt facility on the expectation

that the borrowings could be recouped through future rental income.

In June 2009 an unsuccessful commercial transaction process (via a Memorandum of Understanding) with Victoria Fresh Markets Pty Ltd was brought to an end.

Due to the cumulative impact of prolonged project development, multiple changes in delivery methods and optimistic assump-tions regarding private sector participation and future rental income, the project con-

tinues to face significant delivery risks with increasing budget and timing pressures.

Significant additional capital funding is required to complete the project based on the current scope, and the Government is likely to bear significant demand risk on de-

velopment of a new market facility.

The Government has com-menced a strategic review to investigate options for the project’s future direction. The strategic review will also take

account of the complex contract arrange-ments that were entered into.

All options for the future of the project are likely to have significant cost implications.

07

victorian economic and Financial statement

All the above poses many questions pending a resolution of relocating or staying at Footscray Road. In either case, there are many points to debate with government before certainty can be returned to this industry.

The pertinent point is that industry must be set on a stable and sustainable cost basis and that an open and frank dialogue will need to take place with government so this industry can realise its enormous potential.

The project continues to face significant delivery risks with increasing budget and timing pressures.

09OF AFFAIRS

How do you get a life?

issue 05 may 2011

if you answer yes to one or some of the above, the next question will be how do you do that? The simple answer is to change the operat-ing hours of the market to a 6.00 am start for five days a week!

The ‘operating hours’ debate has gone on for generations (see chart) but the markets are different to what they were 10, 20, 50 or 100 years ago. Unfortu-nately too many people view the future from the “rear vision mirror” often showing self interest to that of industry develop and growth. As well, history shows that a minority few have dictated an intractable approach to altering operating times above those of the majority.

Business has changed and so have the people from the 1990s when the MMA was established. Around this time there

were around 2500 buyers coming into the markets. That has eroded with the onset of supermarkets encroaching on independent retailers who now total around 1200 buy-ers. However, most wholesalers offer that the real number is close to 700 businesses most days.

The nature of fruit and vegetable wholesal-ing and retailing has changed as mecha-nisation, cold storage, improved reliability and efficiencies in transport have devel-oped. Retailing particularly has changed in

that seven day trading redefined the nature of the independent retailer. Very few shops now have the same person purchasing produce in the early hours of the morning, then serving customers during the day and locking at night. But what has not changed is the competitive nature of the industry as independent, small businesses compete for their share of the pie.

From a wholesaler’s perspective their day starts early. They arrive at the markets most-ly between 12.00 midnight and 2.00 am

and receive and sort their stock and make up orders posted the day before. Upon opening of market trading hours they experience an early rush of trade. There follows long periods of idleness and ‘stand-ing around’ prior to some further activity around 7 or 8 am. Packing up of store areas then takes place before heading upstairs to bookwork and calls to producers.

In summary, both the retailer and the wholesaler have been affected by the changing nature of the industry whilst the operating hours have not kept pace with the new paradigms of doing business.

Added to this are the later starting times of other central markets in Australia and Mel-bourne’s competitive “disadvantage” - first to open and everyone bases the pricing equation on us. This results in Melbourne always being the ‘poor cousin’ when compared to other markets whilst acknowl-edging that the ‘culture’ here is historically different and there is an unwillingness to recognise it and change.

Although everyone must bear some burden of blame at the situation, one can argue that the landlord, the Victorian State Government via the Melbourne Market Authority is not without some guilt. The objects of the MMA are to:

•Provideacommerciallyviable wholesale facility for the efficient distribu-tion of fresh produce

•Optimisereturnsonland and assets con-trolled and managed by MMA

•Ensureafairandcom-petitive environment for the wholesale trading of commerce

The last point ‘Ensure a fair and competitive environment...’ goes to the heart of the hours’ issue. Enforcement of the Hours of Operation was an issue when 40 years ago the market was moved from Victoria Markets to Footscray Road and tenants

were assured that ‘policing of the 5.00 am start would be enforced’. And the same story of the enforcement starting times was presented by the Melbourne Market Trust when it took over in 1980 and again with the formation of the MMA in 1994 and most years since.

Enforcement of operating rules and the issue of ‘early access’ includes access card time programming, definition of category on access card, using a whole-saler’s (either principle’s or employees) access card, ‘Country buyer’ term, rules and enforcement, retailers taking warehouse, store or stand space to cir-cumvent rules, early delivery of product to parking bays, and parking outside the markets and walking through the gates unchecked are all included. Other observations include retailers’ trucks departing the market at opening time with fully loaded trucks, people ‘trading’ from the car parks and country buyers writing their own set of rules.

The enforcement issue here is not with the officers or security as they have endeavoured to rein in “the sins of past habits”. It is a direct responsibility of the MMA board and management. These is-sues can’t be entirely slated to the pres-

ent board and management as they have built up over a long period. However, now it is their responsibility to put an end to the undermining of competitive business; the disadvantaging of lawful tenants; the result-ing burden of the cost of doing business; and the recognition that the industry is now in this century not the last one or the before that!

How do we go about change? The MMA Chair has offered to “chair a meeting of all Advisory Committee Chairmen and one committee representative – to discuss current trading.” However, similar discus-sions in the past have had limited impact in addressing industry change. As well, both government and the MMA have stated that they are taking no action on changing operating hours at Footscray Road after ini-tially indicating a different story in 2010.

What needs to change at the melbourne markets for you to lead a ‘more normal life’?

The simple answer is to change the operating hours of the market to a 6am start for five days a week!

Change

Operating

hOurs!

and would you prefer to add value to both your business and that of your customers rather than restricting your business value and function?

Would you prefer a safe working environment to one that is affected by people who are suffering the effects of sleep deprivation?

Would you prefer spending quality time with your family and friends rather than being tired or sleeping?

Would you, as a whole-saler or retailer prefer to be getting up at 3 or 4 or 5 am instead of getting out of bed at midnight or 1 or 2 o’clock to go to work?

ques

tiOn:

ques

tiOn:

ques

tiOn:

ques

tiOn:

mar

ket h

ours

:

separating Out the Operating and enfOrCement Of hOursTo get the ball rolling and to separate the two issues of op-erating hours and enforcement of hours, we are requesting that all readers fill out the enclosed survey form and comments sec-tion together with your name and return to John Roach, CEO of Fresh State. The surveys will then be com-piled for analysis and will be held in confidence. The collected information will guide the debate for setting of hours, attention to enforce-ment and an agreed pathway to people ‘getting a life again’!!

1840 1860 1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000

Sunset

QVMopened

OPENING TIME

CLOSING TIME

Agents to QVM

FootscrayRoad1am

2am3am4am5am6am7am8am9am

10am11am12pm

1pm2pm3pm

melbourne markets chart of opening and closing times 1841 – 2011

08

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les:

OF AFFAIRS10 11issue 05 may 2011

Karl McIntosh

member: six months.

Works: Holman Fresh – General manager Tasmanian division.

Karl believes it is vital for the market to have a unified voice on issues, to ensure that it is heard.

He would like to see a unified marketing campaign for green grocers, with pooled resources.

He thinks a later start time would encourage more young people to work at the market, and address the issue of its aging workforce.

Karl said the Committee decided at the end of last year to focus on one single event or issue at a time, to ensure it is done as well as possible.

“Everyone is really motivated to get things done and achieve a lot this year,” he said.

He enjoys the social aspect of meeting other young, motivated people.

He said he also enjoyed getting different perspectives on issues from people work-ing in different sectors within the market.

Daniel Millis

member: eighteen months.

Works: Mumford Wholesalers – sales and marketing.

The best aspect of membership of the Committee is being exposed to situations and processes that he would otherwise never have been involved in, Daniel said.

The Committee’s presentation to then Major Projects Minister Tim Pallas last year was an “eye opening experience”.

“Having an opportunity to put our case forward to the Minister taught me a lot about how political processes work – or don’t work,” he said.

He said being able to network and meet other young people at the market had a broad range of professional benefits. It was also good socially.

“We plan social events and make sure that everyone has a chance to have fun as well as all of the work,” he said.

meet the Young executive committee members

Callum Cormack

member: three years.

Works: Callum started work as a casual employee at Woolworths in 1997 in the produce department. Callum then made his way up through the ranks and found himself in the produce buying Team. In 2008 he was offered a position at Moraitis as Retail Sales Manager for Victoria.

Callum has been on the Young Executive for 3 years. In that time he has seen many people come and go. “The best thing about the YEC is we are all young, energetic, charismatic and willing to get right into the day to day issues of what we face being in this industry”.

With the support of the Fresh State board we have the opportunity to really grind hard the issues that need dealing with. With the focus on only working on one major project at a time really lets us put in 110% effort”, Callum said.

Callum thinks the YEC is also a great net-working facility, not only for Victoria, but right around Australia, and I encourage males or females to join.

Mark Grillo

member: eighteen months.

Works: Latorre’s Fruit and Vegetable Whole-salers – sales.

Credit and market hours are the two big-gest issues facing young people in the market, according to Mark.

“We don’t want businesses to go under be-cause people don’t pay their bills,” he said.

As the father of two young children he would like to see market hours that pro-mote a healthier work/life balance.

He said membership of the Committee allowed him to have a say on issues and to be involved.

“It is good to know what everyone else is thinking about things,” he said.

“It is also good to be able to put my own point of view across.”

He encouraged more young people to join.

“Often you don’t realise how much you can benefit from something until you give it a go.”

Lukasz Gorajek

member: three and a half years.

Works: Avanti Fresh Produce – Special Project Manager.

Lukasz went part time this year so that he could return to university to study a mas-ters in business administration and market-ing. He joined the Young Executive Commit-tee because he wanted to meet other young people from the market and be involved.

But he said membership had brought other unforseen benefits.

“Fresh State have really supported me pro-fessionally, paying for me to go to confer-ences and courses,” he said.

He said being a member of the committee helped him develop leadership and com-munication skills that would benefit him throughout his lifetime.

It had also allowed him to have a say on important issues.

“Having the opportunity to speak to other motivated people who want to make a difference is great for everyone involved,” he said.

Adrian Antonello

member: six months.

Works: Antonello Produce – owner.

Concern about the future of the industry from an independent retailer’s point of view prompted Adrian to join the Commit-tee.

“The big supermarkets have taken over and I would like to look at what we can do to rectify that,” he said.

“I think it is important to inform the public about what is going on.”

He said membership of the Committee provided an opportunity to have a say on issues that were important to him.

“There is no point complaining about something, it is better to try to do some-thing about it,” he said.

They are the future of Melbourne Market. Six people under 40 are employed in a range of areas at the market but have one thing in common. They all care about

its future direction enough to give up their own time to work for its benefit.

The Young executive Committee has been operating at melbourne market for many years, previously as the Young marketeers and relaunched as the Young executives in 2006.

Towards the end of last year members decided an even more concerted ef-fort was needed, and increased their meetings from monthly to every two or three weeks.

Their topics of discussion range from serious issues such as the market’s ag-ing workforce, to planning social events

such as football games and the Forklift Challenge.

Last year the Committee made a pre-sentation to the then minister for major Project, Tim Pallas, on market hours, organised the highly successful Forklift Challenge and conducted fundraising for the royal Flying Doctor Service.

high on the agenda for the year ahead is continuing their fight for better mar-ket hours to attract more young people to the industry.

There will also be time set aside to have fun, and get to know each other socially.

Some new social events will be added to the calendar, along with the old favourites.

And they plan on recruiting more young people to join their committee and reap some of the rewards member-ship brings.

“Having the opportunity to speak to other motivated people who want to make a difference.”

“I would like to see market hours that promote a healthier work/life balance.”

“It is vital for the market to have a unified voice on issues, to ensure that it is heard.”

“With the focus on only working on one major project at a time really lets us put in 110% effort.”

“The big supermarkets have taken over and I would like to look at what we can do to rectify that.”

“Having an opportunity to put our case forward to the Minister taught me a lot about how political processes work.”

lukasz gorajek callum cormack mark grillo daniel millis Karl mcintosh adrian antonello

12 13OF AFFAIRS

Major General Jeffery’s explained the role of the RFDS, complemented Fresh State and the AC on the initiative of conducting Pit Stop Health Checks and encouraged greater participation in leading active lives.

Shane Schnitzler, President of the AC, ex-plained the changing dynamics of the indus-try as participants decrease by number but their through-put increased by volume and value. He emphasized how the 80 / 20 rule has been applying as our narrow marketing channels influence the vertical and horizontal integration of the industry whilst the impor-tance of central markets and wholesalers with their $7-8 billion annual throughput is little understood in consumer land.

Shane’s presentation included an overview on Pit Stop and Forklift Challenge piloted at the Melbourne Markets by Fresh State that will be turned into national initiatives with supporting partners the RFDS and GlaxoSmithKline.

A Changing industry - horizontal and Vertical integration

One of the highlights of the conference was the presentations and panel session on horizontal and vertical integration of both the wholesale sector and the broader fresh

produce industry. Four leading industry participants gave an over-view of the “the good, the bad and the ugly” of

their business models, where they started and why integration was their focal point.

Bev Steggle

The Steggle’s company is owned and oper-ated by Directors Beverly and Alan Steggle’s and is made up of two distinct divisions, Alan Steggle’s Produce (established 1919) and Alan Steggle’s Food Services. The

customer base includes major retail chains throughout NSW, Queensland and Victoria with products manufactured to order and delivered by a fleet of their own refriger-ated vehicles.

hamish montague

Montague Fresh is now known as a producer, wholesale, export and logis-tics company. Bill Montague started the

company in 1948 and now many of his grandchildren have followed Bill’s three sons into the business managing their many orchards, warehouses and export business.

robert nugan

Fresh Produce Group was estab-lished by Robert Nugan in 1991 and the group has quickly grown into one of Australia’s largest and most innovative fresh produce providers. It now includes growing, sourcing, importing, exporting, packaging, ripening, wholesaling and distributing after starting out as an import company.

Luke harris

Harris Farm Markets was estab-lished in 1971 and now has 22 retail locations and a wholesale business in the Sydney Markets. The business still remains a family

issue 05 may 2011

major general michael Jeffery AC, Ao, former gov-ernor general of Australia and current Chairman of the royal Flying Doctors Service (rFDS) officially opened this year’s Australian Chamber (AC) confer-ence in newcastle. he spoke on the urgent need to take a national focus especially for planning and initiatives as this industry is critically important for the health and wellbeing of all Australians.

Four leading industry participants gave an over-view of the “the good, the bad and the ugly” of their business models, where they started and why integration was their focal point.

Bow Tie Dinner and AwardsSt Patricks Day was the theme for celebrations at the Australian Chamber - Bow Tie Dinner. Green bow ties were the order of the day for man and green ‘acces-sories’ for women with the gather-ing entertained by the very funny comedian Jimeoin.

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43% $20-$49

32% $5-$19

8% <$5

weekly fruit & Veg spend – variations across households

Col Johnson Young Achiever AwardDarren Yip, NSW

Meritorious Service AwardJohn Garrett, Newcastle

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business with David and Catherine Harris and their three sons Luke, Angus and Tristan all taking leading roles and they now have interests in production to round off a wholly integrated business.

Fresh Forum

For the first time this years’ AC Con-ference included a Fresh Forum in association with PMA Aus-NZ. The day included presentations from Martin Kneebone, Freshlogic, talking about consumption of fresh produce and Steve Sheppard from Brand Story on consumer attitudes to fresh produce with guest speaker John Lees present-ing on where ‘high achieving sales staff’ concentrate their efforts and why.

conference

reasons for shopping at specialists

Graphs courtesy Martin Kneebone – Freshlogic.

(Clockwise from left): Wendy Lovett, Carol Dollar and Golin Gray | Ian Main and Mark Moore. | Erin Hart and Renee Hutchinson.

14 15OF AFFAIRSm

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issue 05 may 2011

pit stop reveals: Bigger chassis and improved exhaust emissions!

“our waist lines are getting bigger but less of us are smoking and drinking”.

And as one well known market personality said, “is that tape measure long enough”! These are the early outcomes of our second Pit Stop held in the centre of the markets on Thursday 24 march.

(Clockwise from left): Kevin Sheedy and Minister Napthine receiving a health check. | CEO of RFDS Vic Scott Chapman. | Health testing on market stall owners. | GSK Australia Director David Herd. | (left to right) Shane Schnitzler, Minister Napthine, Fresh State CEO John Roach, Joe Amalfi and Jim Amalfi. | Kevin Sheedy, Scott Chapman, and Murray Rodgers. | Receiving a chassis check.

Sheedy urged everyone to “take the time to enjoy your life – don’t cut it short and don’t deprive your family

due to an untimely sick-ness or death. It is easy

to see what condition you are in, how

you are running and it doesn’t

take long.”

16 17OF AFFAIRS issue 05 may 2011

To pick up the theme of the Australian Grand Prix and to mark the start of the AFL season football great Kevin Sheedy launched this year’s Pit Stop with some thoughtful advice. Sheedy urged everyone to “take the time to enjoy your life – don’t cut it short and don’t deprive your family due to an untimely sickness or death. It is easy to see what condition you are in, how you are running and it doesn’t take long”, Sheedy stated with his usual enthusiasm.

Sheedy has always been an outspoken advocate for health, particularly men’s health, and opened the event by being a willing participant for a health check along with the Minister for Major Projects Hon.

Dr Denis Napthine, and Fresh State President Shane Schnitzler. Sheedy also took great delight in showing off the new colours for the Greater Western Sydney AFL team for 2012 which are “the same colours as our orange and silver safety vests”.

Minister Napthine was even keener for his health check as he said “his blood pressure and stress levels had to be high from review-ing whether the markets will stay at Footscray Road or go to Epping”. And, no, he did not indi-cate what the government’s decision will be!

Shane said “Pit Stop was a fun way to find out where you body is at and it is much easier to get a health check than to be ne-gotiating with Government on relocation!”

Shane added that the unhealthy lifestyles of most market participants including the early starts need to urgently change. “The early starting hours are unhealthy and stressful and many people have commented to me that last year’s event prompted them into going and getting a full health check with their own GP.

David Herd, Australian Director of Glaxo SmithKline (GSK), shared the story of his local green grocer changing his lifestyle because of last year’s Pit Stop. David said Giuseppe Russo had stopped smoking, now goes to the gym and changed his working hours because Pit Stop was a great wake-up call!

The unhealthy lifestyles of most market participants including the early starts need to urgently change. The early starting hours are unhealthy and stressful and many people have commented that last year’s event prompted them into going and getting a full health check with their own GP.

LEFT: Big turn out by the market businesses as the Pit Stop health testing session was conducted.

TOP RIGHT: Tony Lombardo and Jeff Jones with the1959 Top Door Slammer.

BOTTOM RIGHT: Kevin Sheedy with Dean Bentley, Tony Pettinella, David Johnson, Joe Amalfi and Jeff Cutajar.

GSK continued their strong support of the Royal Flying Doctors Service (RFDS) and Fresh State by partnering the event for a second year. As well, GSK has been working with Fresh State and the Australian Chamber to run a Pit Stop in conjunction with the RFDS in each central market in Australia.

The RFDS provided the staff to run the health checks along with trained staff from GSK. Scott Chapman, CEO of RFDS Vic, was most appreciative of the support for RFDS and has reportedly challenged the Fresh State CEO to a ‘measure-off in six months time’ as they could both be in better shape!

The MMA made a generous donation of $4,000 to the fundraising for RFDS in what is now becoming an annual event. This year saw many female market participants take a health check for the first time whilst others were back to see if they had ‘improved’ from last year.

Shane and Harry Kapiris arranged for the new Kapiris Racing Team’s “1959 Top Door Slammer” to be on show for the first time outside the race track! There are obviously many car enthusiasts out there and this added to the success of the day.

Special thanks to Kleenheat for providing the BBQ and staff and to the market businesses that generously moved their business from their usual stands on the day.

A big thank you Jalna and everyone who donated produce for the breakfast BBQ as well as the MMA operational staff and Alcon Security for their great help in getting things ready and looking after our guests on the day!

men’s health:

19carbon footprinting:

reducing Your Footprint:

0

0.5

4.5

4.0

3.5

3.0

2.5

2.0

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1.0GW

P (k

g CO

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t)

Pallet base

Cornerboard

Cardboard top cap

Cardboard pack

Interconnecting strip

EAN pack label

Pallet card

Polybag/liner

Strapping

Fruit label

Pocket pack

The bottom line is an understanding and thinking behind reducing your carbon emissions AND hope-fully reducing your costs!

ZESPRI markets about 100 million trays of kiwifruit each year and every tray contains cardboard and plastic. While ZESPRI knew this had a signifi-cant environmental footprint they didn’t know the size of that footprint.

According to Alistair Mowat (In-novation Leader – Sustainability at ZESPRI) “we know the on orchard carbon footprint is about 693 g CO2 for each tray that leaves the orchard. But what we did not have was a good understanding of the

impact of the packaging in the pallets of kiwifruit we ship every year”.

Understanding the product

It is important for ZESPRI, as they “de- carbonize” their supply chain, to examine each component in detail to identify the options that they have to reduce their footprint. Packaging is an important component as too little packaging can result in product loss, while too much leads to production or disposal issues.

Each kiwifruit tray is a mixture of cardboard and plastic designed to protect the fruit and keep it in good condi-tion until it reaches the market. Cardboard has been found to contribute more than 50% of the carbon footprint of a pallet. Kimberly Robertson from CATALYST® R&D explains “this is because after fruit, cardboard makes up most of the remaining mass of a pallet. However, what is also interesting is the contribution of the plastic components to the pallet footprint”.

Small things count

The plastic components of a pallet of kiwifruit can include the pocket pack or tray the fruit sit in, the liner that goes around the fruit to prevent water loss, and the strapping that binds the trays together on the pallet. The combination of these components will vary, depending on the pack type. In some cases, the total of these plastics components can make up to 9% of the mass of the pallet and contribute 45% of the

pallet footprint. Kimberly says “the plastic components of the pallet have a footprint that is significantly greater than their contribution to the mass of the pallet. This is because of the high energy inputs needed to make the plastic pocket pack, liner and strapping”.

Different trays, different footprint

Each tray type contains a different number and weight of fruit. For this reason it is important to not only look at the footprint per pallet but also the footprint per unit of fruit. In doing so it was found that the footprint per kilogram of fruit of the bulk tray is substantially lower than trays and pallets that use a pocket pack.

Of the plastic components the pocket pack is the single largest contributor to the footprint.  However, pack types with pocket packs are less than 15% of the inventory, and are predominantly used for premium market segments in Asia that have lower shipping distances than Europe and improve

storage life.  For the future ZESPRI are considering their op-tions.  For example, Alistair Mowat says “we are working with research organizations and commercial partners to develop low carbon footprint options to substitute for our existing plastic packaging materials”.

Disposal/recycling of packaging has a big effect on its footprint

Disposal of packaging can have a significant impact on the footprint. This is because the recycling of the plastic or cardboard substi-tutes for an equivalent amount of material that would have otherwise been produced from raw material. Some initial work on plastics shows that this may reduce the total packag-ing footprint by up to 30% if recycling can be quantified.

kimberly Robertson, Malcolm garnham& gerard McEvilly - CATAlyST® R&D ltd

www.catalystnz.com

ZESPRI International has found that by taking a whole of life approach to the carbon footprint of packaging they can:• identifyoptionstooptimizepallet

configurations to reduce their impact.

• workwithpackagingsupplierstoidentify less fossil fuel intensive materials - particularly for the plastics.

• workin-markettoenablerecyclingof packaging and more accurately attribute end-of-life emissions or credits to their packaging.

By working with Catalyst, ZESPRI is starting to develop the detailed un-derstanding that is needed for them to identify options to de-carbonise their supply chain and enhance their position as the leading marketer of kiwifruit.

next steps for Zespri

The graph below shows that per kilogram of packaging material used, the plastic materials have a bigger footprint than the other components. The pocket pack and the fruit labels have a larger footprint than the pallet base which has relatively low energy inputs into its manufacture (and may also be reused many times).

sm

all t

hin

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count!

0.00

0.02

0.04

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0.10

0.12

GW

P (k

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uit)

ENIT – single layerwith pocket pack

ENMB bulk pack

packaging material footprints

many people have asked for a relevant example to help their understanding, on a practical level, what carbon footprinting is about. We have chosen zespri in nz as the case study but this example can apply to most commodities in the fruit and vegetable industry.

The bottom line is an understanding and thinking behind reducing your carbon emis-sions AND hopefully reducing your costs!

Different trays … different footprint.

The following graph shows the difference in footprint between two pack types- one that contains a pocket pack (ENIT) and a bulk pack that has no pocket pack (ENMB).

pocket pack v bulk pack

20 OF AFFAIRS issue 05 may 2011ch

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mango and cherry auction

Robert Millis – Cherry King in 1995

2121

Yasi’s effect on the humble Banana

Other regions such as the Mareeba area were almost spared with only minimal losses of about 15-20%. However, when tallied together the cyclone wiped out around 80% of Queensland’s production, mindful that Queensland pro-duces over 90% of all bananas grown in Australia.

After Yasi - The outcome should see supplies being inter-rupted until at least August/September 2011, and given favourable conditions we should start to see production slowly building over the following 6 to 12 months. From that point on we should see a return to the 440,000 to 460,000 carton per week (1.9 million per month) capacity of the Australian banana industry.

Within a day or two following Yasi, all markets reacted with banana prices doubling in order to slow down demand and stretch out supplies that were in the system for as long as possible. Since then all supplies have been limited to “down fruit” which was salvaged over a four to five week period and cleared over a two month period, together with fresh tree fruit from the Mareeba, NSW and Carnar-von growing areas. We are now left with approximately 80,000 to 95,000 cartons nationally per week (350,000 per month), which represents about 20% of normal capacity.

Pre Yasi - One has to be mindful of pre cyclone production lev-els where production was in serious oversupply reaching ‘glut proportions’ during mid November and December. The national weekly total for all central markets was between 550,000 cartons and up to what is an all time record of 660,000 cartons.

Sydney and Melbourne alone recorded figures in one week of 247,000 and 198,000 cartons respectively. As a result prices plummeted to as low as $2 and $3 per carton with many oth-ers unsaleable.

Looking ahead to the months of April to August this year, supplies will be low as the colder weather slows down normal production, and Coffs harbour will be at the low end of pro-duction with only minimal quantities expected. This will further reduce the current weekly national figure of 80,000-95,000 cartons to perhaps 75,000-80,000 cartons.

Buying resistance from consumers appears to be real as cur-rently stocks are slow to move and it is little wonder when con-sumers price tickets at $12 – 14 per kilo in shops. It may well be that consumers are already looking for ‘better value’ with apple, mandarin and orange supplies increasing and prices set at a much more reasonable level!

The vivid pictures of Cyclone Yasi flattening banana crops across far north Queensland in late January was seen on televisions across Australia. The damage has been significant with innisfail and Tully being hardest hit where approximately 95% of major production was affected.

0

500 000

2 500 000

2 000 000

1 500 000

1 000 000

Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar2010 2011

total number of banana cartons marketed nationally

Oct 2010 nov 2010 Dec 2010 Jan 2011 Feb 2011 Mar 2011

Adelaide $10 – $22 $14 – $30 $5 – $20 $18 – $26 $10 – $65 $2 – $160

Brisbane $6 – $18 $12 – $26 $5 – $18 $18 – $24 $10 – $55 $5 – $145

Melbourne $10 – $16 $12 – $24 $3 – $15 $12 – $30 $8 – $65 $5 – $130

Perth $14 – $24 $16 – $32 $16 – $24 $24 – $32 $7 – $70 $10 – $150

Sydney $5 – $20 $10 – $24 $3 – $16 $10 – $22 $2 – $55 $1 – $130

selling price ranges for Qld bananas (doesn’t include nsw or carnarvon)

The huge price variation reflects the wide quality range that was on offer from February (post cyclone). “Down fruit” was the major contributor - many were unsaleable.

Those that have been around the markets for more than five years will remember the Cherry auction and to a lesser degree the mango auction. The first cherry auction commenced 1995 when robert millis representing holman’s was crowned the first Cherry King. The first auc-tion raised $5,000 for charity. The second year $7,000 was raised and this grew to $25,000 in subsequent years.

The first year was particular important as that year the supported charity was the Motor Neuron Disease Charity. It had as its patron the then Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson who presented the winner with a ‘sword’ as a commemorative gesture to the charity.

The mango auction came on board to extend the

charity work of the com-munity. Both auctions had become fixtures in some of the other central markets and it

was industry’s collected approach to dig deep for

those in need. In our Christmas edition of

Fresh State of Affairs we featured the NSW Chamber’s Charity Cherry auction that raised $110,000 for the first box of cherry for the season.

Not to be shown up, the Perth Market Cher-ry Auction raised a record of $78,830 for the Princess Margaret Hospital Foun-dation. Tony Galati from Galati Nominees was crowned Cherry King with his winning bid of $31,500 for 1kg of WA Cherries!!!

Here in Melbourne, the cherry and mango auctions ceased in the mid 2000s fol-lowing withdrawal of support from the MMA. The MMA had

supported the fund raising efforts by match-ing, on a dollar for dollar basis, of all funds raised. This was unfortunate as the recipients of those funds would have benefited from such generosity.

The Fresh State Board has resolved to start its own charity foundation. The Cherry and Mango Auctions will be revived this year as an initial first step to a more boarder social

responsibility to those less fortunate than most of us. One of the principles that

support the foundation is that ALL dollars collected are to be forward-ed to the nominated charity which does not happen in most other charity raising undertakings.

The dates for both the Cherry and Mango Auction will be

published in the next edition of Fresh State of Affairs to get the ball rolling!!

dates for your diary:

Event: Date: Location:

National Veg Expo 5-6 May 2011 Werribee

We Do Care Gala Dinner 14 May 2011 Melrose Receptions,

Tullamarine

Ninth Australian Banana Industry Congress

1-4 June 2011 Highett Regency, Coolum

Fresh Connections Conference 8-10 June 2011 BCEC Brisbane

Fresh State Gala Ball 9 September 2011 Carousel,

Albert Park

22 OF AFFAIRS issue 05 may 2011fr

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brett collins

meet our newest board member

Level 13, 440 Collins Street Melbourne Victoria Australia 3000tel: +61 (03) 9224 1000 | fax: +61 (03) 9224 1099 | email: info@wfw.com.au | web: www.wfw.com.au

Planning your future

Do you intend to retire in the next 5 - 10 years?

Do you intend to pass on your business to your son / daughter / other family members?

Do they have a share in the business already?

Or do you intend to sell your business to a 3rd party?

Have you planned for an untimely illness or worse?

Have you reviewed your plan (if you have one) because your personal circumstances have changed?

Have you discussed with your Accountant the tax implications to business succession planning?

And lastly, do you have legal documents to support your plan?

Business Succession Planning – Getting Ahead of the Game

For further information or to discuss your particular business succession planning requirements, please contact Euan Luff or Anthony Desiderio, Senior Partners, of Wilmoth Field Warne Lawyers on 03 9224 1000.

Most wholesalers have probably spent a lifetime growing their business. And we understand that every business is unique and that there is no one-size-fits-all solution. What may be a good solution for one business is not always the best solution for another business. It is important to establish from the beginning a clear focus on what your goals are and the outcomes you want to achieve.

In preparing a business succession plan, you will need to consider your business structure currently in place and whether it is appropriate. Is it a;

• a company structure, • a partnership, • a discretionary trust or unit trust; or • simply through a sole proprietorship;

How you have set up your business structure may affect your plans of disposing your interest in the business upon retirement and may affect your Capital Gains Tax (CGT) liability upon disposal.

Example 1: If you operate your business through a company structure, succession planning may prove a little easier as shares in the company can be sold, gifted or bequeath to your family members. However, when you dispose of your interest in the company, you will not be entitled to claim the general CGT discount of 50% as this is only available to sole proprietors and trusts. But you may be able to claim the small business CGT Concession if you can satisfy certain conditions.

Example 2: If you operate your business through a discretionary trust, then it may be more difficult to deal with succession planning because your interests in the trust cannot be sold and the interest in the trust cannot be bequeath in a will. However, there may be solutions to these issues. In addition to the general CGT discount of 50%, you may also potentially claim the small business CGT Concession if you are able to satisfy certain conditions.

If you find yourself in the predicament of not knowing where to start, a simple guide is to write down what you want; ie – “I want my son and daughter to take over the business in the next three years and I want them to have to ‘buy in’ rather than giving it to them”, or, “I wish to leave the business in the next few years and my partners want to continue operating the business”.

Euan Luff, a Senior Partner, of Wilmoth Field Warne Lawyers elaborates. “Once someone has an idea of what they want, then it is much easier to tailor a solution that best suits the business and the individual needs while at the same time maximising any tax advantage available”.

“The next steps from there includes working closely with you and/or your Accountant to understand your individual financial requirements and circumstances and utilising our firm’s experience and range of technical expertise to draw the legal aspects together and help you develop your business succession plan”, Euan said.

“The biggest issue we see is where a client was intending “to get around to it” but never does. The result of not having a plan in place is that it will cost them and their families a lot of money, time and worry”.

“If we communicate and work together then we are going to achieve more than if everyone is working separately.”

A passion for marketing and new ideas for communication are among the contributions brought to the table by Fresh State’s newest and youngest board member.

Brett Collins, 40, joined the board last month but has been a familiar face around the market for 18 years.

The Perfection Fresh Australia Pty Ltd Gen-eral Manager Southern States said good internal communication was the key to getting ahead in business.

He will be looking at methods such as lift-ing circulation of the Fresh State magazine and promoting cooperation, which he said would benefit everyone.

“If we communicate and work together then we are going to achieve more than if everyone is working separately,” Brett said.

He said he was “overwhelmed and privi-leged” to be given the opportunity to serve on the board.

“I am looking forward to working with the other directors and also bringing some new ideas to the table.”

Brett balances his busy working life by living on land in quiet and picturesque Mt Macedon.

He said the country property provided the perfect location for him and wife Debra to bring up Joshua, 12 and Angus, six.

“We spend a lot of time outside, which is great for the boys and for us.”

When he is not horse riding, snow skiing or working around the house Brett can often be found at the football, cheering on Carlton.

24 2524

Invaluable networking, educational and business building opportunities on offer at Fresh Connections 2011

will have the chance to hear some extraordinary stories of the steps companies took to find alternative warehousing and cool room facilities to ensure supply was maintained” said Worthington.

Following their visit to the Markets, the vegetable tour will head west of Brisbane to Barden Produce and Qualipack in the hard-hit Lockyer Valley, while the fruit tour will head north to Natures Fruit Company, Pinata Marketing and Smerdon Enterprises - some of Australia’s most innovative fruit growers.

“Vegetable growers in the Lockyer Valley suffered considerable crop and infrastructure damage during Queensland’s floods but despite the devastation, they have bounced back remarkably well” said Worthington. “They are such a vital component of the supply of winter vegetable and salad lines, and are an innova-tive growing region so this will be a great opportunity to see first-hand how they have managed to rebuild their crops and businesses.”

“Similarly, fruit crops always have quality issues with excessive rain so the purpose of going to the fruit growing areas north of Brisbane is to get a better understanding of what growers faced and what steps they took to turn their crop around” he added.

Featuring: Business building networking, expo, social program

Alongside an outstanding educational program, networking and having fun are also integral to building business at Fresh Connections 2011, with the packed trade show, welcome reception, and a brilliant international entertainer at the popular Gala Dinner set to make it a program full of networking opportunities.

The 2011 trade show will provide a fan-tastic opportunity for buyers to experience the huge variety and outstanding quality of products available. Of particular note this year is the increased focus on having more fresh produce on display in the trade hall, and a greater presence of growers and wholesale and retail buyers networking under the one roof.

“What we want are more buyers and sellers of fresh produce to create an even bigger and more diverse trade show - a real marketplace” said Worthington.

According to Shane Schnitzler, Chairman of The Australian Chamber, one of the major benefits of Fresh Connections is the ability to see all your business contacts in a couple of days.

“If you want to increase your visibility as a business, there really is no better platform than Fresh Connections 2011 for network-ing and showcasing your company on both a local and interna-tional level,” he added.

Making its Fresh Connections debut this year is the Young Professionals Reception, a unique opportunity for the ‘35 and unders’ to come together and network with their peers and selected current industry leaders over a casual drink. This will be followed by the annual Fresh Connections Gala Dinner, again sponsored by OneHarvest, which has become a Fresh Con-nections highlight. Following the success of last year’s ‘Opera by Disguise’ entertainment, renowned international entertainer James Galea will be sure to delight by presenting the art of magic with a wicked sense of humour.

“Fresh Connections is the coming together of all the key produce and floral industry players and we believe it’s the premier event in the Australian-New Zealand calendar,” said Felicity Robson-Rous, General Manager, Marketing, OneHarvest.

OF AFFAIRS issue 05 may 2011

Visitors from Australia, New Zealand, Asia, and beyond will find an invaluable array of networking, educational and business building opportunities on offer at Fresh Connections 2011 Conference and Trade Show when it convenes in Brisbane 8-10 June.

Co-hosted by PMA Australia-New Zealand, the Australian Fresh Fruit Company (AFFCO), and the Australian Chamber of Fruit & Vegetable Industries, the event is set to be the largest network-ing, education and information event bringing together the fruit, vegetable and floral industries in the Australasian region –and registrations are now open!

Featuring: Global education from innovative business leaders

The Fresh Connections 2011 conference program will once again be a highlight, featuring all the latest consumer trends, insights from retailers, the importance of foodservice to the fresh produce industry and new potential market opportunities, amongst many other topics.

Iconic Celebrity Chef, Maggie Beer will be joined by her daugh-ter Saskia of Barossa Farm Produce to offer insights into how fresh produce businesses can really connect with consumers to increase consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables. They will be joined by inspirational film-maker Joe Cross, who will speak about how dramatically increasing the amount of fruits and veg-etables in his diet has transformed his life, and Rich Dachman, VP Produce Sysco Corporation on how the US foodservice industry is aiming to double fruit and veg consumption by 2020.

“Maggie has some great insights to share on how we all can do better on providing more flavoursome products to our consumers, while Joe’s story is inspirational and there are potentially some

great outcomes for our industry if we can get his message out there. Apart from the obvious health benefits, stimulating fresh produce consumption is also the best way we can strengthen and grow our industry” said Michael Worthington, CEO of PMA Australia-New Zealand.

The stellar line-up of speakers also includes Raymond Jin, Man-aging Director of Golden Wing Mau on opening the doors to doing business in China; Morris Miselowski on what our industry can be doing to fully incorporate the latest social media technology into the way we promote our products; and by popular demand, Bryan Silbermann, President and CEO of the Produce Marketing Association (PMA US) will return to give the keynote address on positioning our industry to meet the fast-changing consumer trends.

Featuring: Tours to Queensland’s best retailers and growing regions

Following a sold-out retail tour at last year’s Fresh Event in Melbourne, Fresh Connections 2011 Conference and Trade Show is set to add two new tours to the mix. While this year’s retail tour will take in new-look store formats by leading Brisbane retailers Coles and Woolworths, as well as some vibrant fresh produce outlets, two additional tours (one fruit- and one vegetable-related) will also be on offer to delegates.

Both new tours will begin with breakfast and an early morning tour of the Rocklea Markets, who as a key supplier to markets all around Australia, were significantly affected by the Queensland floods.

“With so many suppliers having their warehouse facilities at the markets, maintaining supply to retailers was critical so delegates

Registrations for Fresh Connections 2011 are now open! To register, and for all the latest Fresh Connections 2011 news and information, visit www.freshconnections 2011.com.au.

Media Enquiries:Michael Worthington T: +61 (0)3 8844 5536 E: m.worthington@pma-anz.com

Erin Hart T:+61 (0)3 8844 5536 E: e.hart@pma-anz.com

upco

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Bringing the industry together

hosted by:

Conference and Trade Show: Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre: 8-10 June 2011

26 27OF AFFAIRS

Works:Fresh Berry Co.

Lives: Lilydale with wife Rosa.

most of my day is spent:Making phone calls.

The football team i barrack for is:Essendon.

my favourite melbourne market moment is:

Drinking a coffee at the cafe and reading the newspaper on a Monday morning after Essendon has won.

The quality i respect most in an employees is:

They listen well and are calm.

As i have grown older i have learnt:There are more years behind me than ahead of me so I had better enjoy them.

if i described my business to a stranger i would say…

We do everything from growing produce, to providing it to retailers, including the logistics of moving it.

The qualities i most enjoy about melbourne market are….

Everyone gets on well.

The pets i have are:A Labrador called Elvis.

in my spare time i enjoy:Going to the football and visiting friends.

my first job was:Working in a hotel.

my fondest memory is:Seeing Elvis Presley live in Las Vegas in 1976.

The aspect of my job i like the most is:

Having Friday and Saturday off.

The thing i dislike the most is:Having to work at night.

i am passionate about:My dislike for people who don’t pay their debts.

my business associates would say that i:

Am a practical joker.

When i was a child i wanted to be:A Footballer.

The place in the world i would most like to go is:

Egypt – and Norway again.

The thing a lot of people don’t know about me is:

I am a bit soft and would help anyone out.

my favourite fruit or vegetable is:Stonefruit on a hot day.

“We do everything from growing produce, to providing it to retailers, including the logistics of moving it.”

issue 05 may 2011

Become a MMCS User for:• Security • Convenience • Control

When you sell your fresh produce:

• Reduce paperwork • Regain control

• Simplify payments • Ensure quality

• Enjoy the convenience • Maintain security

• Improve cash flow • Sell with confidence

LEt MMCS woRk foR you!

Melbourne Markets Credit Service542 Footscray Rd (MB 157)West Melbourne VIC 3003Tel: 03 9687 7333 Fax: 03 9687 7611Email: mmcs@melbmcs.com.au www.melbmcs.com.au

Sign up today!

MMCS_ad_chosen.indd 1 20/04/11 9:31 AM

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