In short:
The Cruncha iceblock, originally produced in the Sunraysia region by Lencia, has returned to shelves after being discontinued in 2020.
However, it is now made overseas from Argentinian fruit, as producing it in Australia is too expensive.
What’s next?
The Australia Food and Grocery Council wants to see tax incentives to stimulate investment in local food and grocery manufacturing.
The return of a much-loved Sunraysia fruit iceblock has been soured by the manufacturer’s decision to make the product overseas using foreign fruit.
The Cruncha has been out of production since 2020, but was made in Mildura from the 1970s onwards from oranges sourced from local farms.
The company that made the iceblocks, Lencia, has announced it is bringing the Cruncha back, but the crunch is that they will be made in Argentina from Argentinian fruit.
The company said exporting Australian citrus to Argentina was not feasible due to significant costs, and the niche, market-led type of packaging required was cheaper to source overseas.
“We didn’t, and don’t, seek to avoid using Australian oranges or other ingredients for cost or quality reasons, rather the location of where we could do the manufacturing dictated where we sourced the oranges,” Lencia spokesperson Matthew Annear said.
“Cruncha will be made in Argentina from Argentinian ingredients to the highest quality standards.”
The Victorian-owned family business said there were no viable manufacturing solutions for the package type in Australia, and the extra cost of making and packaging the product locally would have been prohibitive.
“We don’t feel we can pass on [the cost] to consumers, particularly given the cost-of-living crisis,” Mr Annear said.
The iceblocks also have new packaging and are made in a longer stick shape.
For the love of Crunchas
Mildura’s Sebastian Fletcher was excited when he heard Crunchas were making a comeback.
The 21-year-old has the original iceblock tattooed on his leg as a part of a tattoo collection of iconic Aussie snacks.
“When I was going through what I wanted on [my leg] I was like, ‘Yeah, I definitely need a Cruncha’,” he said.
Mr Fletcher said he remembered enjoying Crunchas on hot school days and being able to buy them from the canteen.
He said while it was a “let-down” to hear the new release was made using overseas fruit, he was eager to give it a try.
“Hopefully they are still as good as the old ones,” he said.
Mildura’s Daniel Rizzuto said Crunchas were also a summer staple for him growing up.
“I have very fond memories of Nonna getting some silver coins from her milk money stash and handing me a 50c piece [to buy a Cruncha],” he said.
Mr Rizzuto, now 27, said while he was excited to taste the newly released Cruncha, it was “concerning” to hear no Australian fruit would be used, and that the packaging would be different.
“I have not yet tried one of the new updated Crunchas, however, I feel they would not hold any of the sentimental value,” he said.
Local Nationals MP Jane Benham said the decision to use foreign fruit to make a once-local icon was disappointing.
“As a region that prides itself on food production and encourages support for Australian farmers, I believe in prioritising local agricultural products,” she said.
Local manufacturing decline
The Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) is the peak industry body for companies that manufacture and supply food in Australia.
Chief executive Tanya Barden said food products were increasingly manufactured offshore.
“Unfortunately, what we have seen is this pattern that as businesses … look to where they are going to reinvest, they have to make a decision about whether to do it in a high-cost country like Australia or move offshore,” she said.
According to the AFGC, food and groceries is the biggest manufacturing sector in Australia, valued at $145 billion and employing about 275,000 people.
“So, it’s got a really important economic footprint,” Ms Barden said.
She said her organisation had advocated for tax incentives to stimulate capital investment in the food and grocery manufacturing sector.
“We need to make products that are more sustainable, not only in terms of the packaging but the ethical sourcing, the energy use, the water use, and so on,” Ms Barden said.
“We do need capital investment to drive that and it’s something that we will continue to advocate [for] so that we can keep strong manufacturing in Australia.”
