RIVERLAND SUSTAINABLE FUTURES FUND

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO (14:47): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Regional Development a question about development in the Riverland.

Leave granted.

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: The position of the Riverland as one of the food bowls of our great state was, as we all here would recall, challenged by the recent extended drought. The Riverland Futures Fund has been created to help get this important region up and going again. Will the minister tell the chamber about a recent grant for horticultural business in the area?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Tourism, Minister for the Status of Women) (14:47): I thank the honourable member for her most important question. Creating a sustainable economy in the Riverland was the motivation to establish the $20 million four-year Riverland Sustainable Futures Fund. The fund is available to support projects that are financially viable and economically sustainable in the longer term.

To date, successful grant funding applications have had strategic importance for the state and/or the Riverland region and, importantly, have been able to demonstrate clearly that they will return a very positive and sustainable impact on economic activity in the Riverland. This activity is generated through either diversifying the Riverland economy or building on the region's existing competitive advantages.

Critical to its success is the ability to leverage from the fund to achieve even greater impact from other spheres of government and the private sector for projects that result in tangible outcomes for the Riverland. As members are well aware, horticulture is one of the important economic pursuits in the region. Many major enterprises—including the wine grape, citrus, stone fruit, almond and vegetable industries—benefit from the region's high quality soils, efficient water irrigation practices and strategic location.

I am pleased to inform the chamber that I have recently approved a grant of just over $106,000 to Solan SA, a company specialising in producing early generation potato seed or mini tubers, to assist it to upgrade its tissue culture laboratory. Solan SA is a 20-year old enterprise, established as a joint venture by a group of Mallee and Riverland potato growers. It has grown to become a specialist supplier of quarantine-standard stock to the Australian potato industry.

The over $220,000 project has been divided into three stages: the first is to extend the tissue culture laboratory and upgrade purpose-built refrigeration and laminar flow cabinets; stage 2 will see the construction of a new two-bay 45 metre long greenhouse; and stage 3 a further three-bay 45 metre greenhouse will be constructed. I understand the company has nearly completed work on part of the tissue laboratory and plans on greenhouse construction in the next few months.

The company aims to use these facilities to reduce reliance on imported mother plant material, which currently comes from Victoria, to increase both the scale and efficiency of its production for commercial potato growers of up to 30 per cent. The project aims to allow the company to reduce contamination of its stock and to extend its existing Victorian Certified Seed Potato Authority accreditation to allow it to house up to 200 varieties of mother potato plants.

This project will capitalise on both the company's experience in a very specialised field and the increasing demand for its products in SA, interstate and overseas, which, when complete, is expected to increase interstate and international export opportunities. The potato industry is the state's largest vegetable crop, worth $413 million in value to the state's economy. It is our expectation that the futures fund will further strengthen this important industry.

Projects seeking further funding through the futures fund are considered against a number of criteria, including that the proposal aligns with the strategic plans and objectives applicable to the area. I congratulate the proprietors of Solan, a husband and wife team, K.E. and F.J. Morely, on building up their Waikerie-based business to become one of only seven Australian suppliers of potato tubers, and look forward to the expected completion of the project later in 2012.