Every week for the last six months, Pat Carmody has taken vegetables freshly picked from his one-tenth-of-a-hectare farm to the SAGE Farmers’ Markets at Moruya on the New South Wales far south coast.
But the 32-year-old fears his business, and the markets themselves, could disappear under proposed new food regulations.
Mr Carmody says he often sells produce the same day it is picked. (ABC South East NSW: James Tugwell)
In 2023, after several outbreaks of foodborne illness, the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code announced more stringent regulations on leafy greens, melons and berries.
The new rules which relate to the picking, washing, storing and transportation of produce, are due to come into effect in 2025.
Each state and territory is responsible for implementing and enforcing the regulations — the NSW Food Authority opened its draft Food Regulation 2025 for community feedback in early December.
Mr Carmody said small-scale farmers like him would be disadvantaged by the proposed changes.
“They’re just not fit for purpose and entirely disproportionate to the risk factors they’re meant to be addressing,” he said.
“It’s been designed for far bigger producers than ourselves.
“We’ve been forgotten.”
The new regulations include a requirement for all vegetable farmers to be licensed, and pay a $370-per-hour fee for food safety officer inspections.
In a statement to the ABC, the NSW Food Authority said the standards aimed to strengthen food safety management along the supply chain.
But Mr Carmody said his market-farm operation was different to industrial agriculture supply chains.
Leafy greens are a target food for new regulations. (ABC South East NSW: James Tugwell)
“The vast majority of my sales are directly to the consumer,” he said.
“They are getting salad that’s picked that day, put in a bag and given to them that afternoon.
“That kind of supply chain eliminates the risk of harmful bacteria growth, because our product isn’t sitting around for a week before it hits the shelf.”
‘Potentially fatal’
Half of Mr Carmody’s weekly income comes from products that would be affected by the rule change.
He said it would be “potentially fatal” to his business, because becoming compliant was too expensive.
“We run on extraordinarily tight margins. All those costs will have to be passed on to the consumer,” Mr Carmody said.
Leafy greens are a reliable source of income for many farmers. (ABC South East NSW: James Tugwell)
“The farmers just cannot afford to bear that burden alone.
“It’s going to be the death knell of small-scale growing in Australia.”
High food standards
Wandandien grower Tim Cooper said the proposed regulations would improve food safety.
“You don’t know if an animal crawled over [produce] at night,” he said.
“It’s going to stop people getting sick unnecessarily and … just give people more confidence in the food they eat.”
Tim Cooper says there’s strict production processes. (ABC South East NSW: James Tugwell)
But he agreed that enforcing industry-wide standards on small-scale growers could wipe them out.
“Is this overkill or is this actually needed? It’ll make food safer, but to what degree?” Mr Cooper said.
“The standards are good, but it will knock some small growers out.”
The heartbeat of regional Australia
President of Byron and Bangalow Farmers’ Markets, Belinda Fortune, said she was worried about the impact the regulations could have.
Belinda Fortune says farmers’ markets need to be preserved. (Supplied: Belinda Fortune)
“No one is happy about it,” she said.
“We understand food safety and the importance of it, but this is disproportionately going to impact the small market.”
Ms Fortune said the markets improved community health and connection and provided regional employment and food security.
“In disasters where transport sometimes can’t get through, having local food in your community is so important,” she said.
The current proposals divide farms into bigger or smaller than 10 hectares.
Ms Fortune said the proposed regulations needed a third category for producers on farms less than two hectares, so they could be exempt from some of the stricter rules and higher fees.
In a statement, the NSW Food Authority said it would take all submissions from the public consultation period into consideration when finalising the new regulations.
