Fruit Fly

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (15:46): Mr President, it will be a very hard act to follow the Hon. David Ridgway's trip around the Monopoly board—and I echo those sentiments; I never thought I would say this, but we do miss Hendrik Gout putting words together in a sensible fashion.

Today I rise to speak about some of the important work being undertaken in our horticultural sector. I recently had the opportunity to spend a few days in the Riverland area and was again impressed with the citrus, stone fruit and grape industries and the increasingly diverse primary industry sector. The area is perhaps best known for its citrus, an industry now worth about $64 million in exports for South Australia. The value of exports of the South Australian citrus industry to China has more than doubled in the past two years and our state's citrus exports to Hong Kong were worth almost $5 million in 2013-14.

The South Australian government is committed to working with and supporting the industry on a range of levels, and we continue to work with the industry to maintain, particularly importantly for the Riverland, our fruit fly free status and combat other biosecurity hazards as they arise. South Australia remains the only mainland state that is fruit fly free. This status returns significant benefits to the horticultural sector, particularly the rich Riverland production area. Our fruit fly free status has been maintained by successive governments for over 60 years and this is something we should all be very proud of.

I had the opportunity to meet with the South Australian Fruit Fly Action Group recently and discuss the threat of fruit fly to South Australia. The action group formed in response to increased pest pressure from the East Coast, particularly in the Sunraysia region, and I was impressed with the passion and belief in the industry of members of that particular group. Their commitment to raising community awareness of the fruit fly problem was good to see.

The action group's most recent activity was to conduct a design-a-poster competition targeted at students from Riverland schools to engage the region's young people and educate them about the serious implications of a fruit fly outbreak in the Riverland region. All too often we take for granted that it will remain fruit fly free but it is a good initiative to make sure that new generations are aware of the importance.

While in Loxton I had the opportunity to announce the winners of this competition and present them with their much deserved awards. I was pleased to present certificates to the winners who were picked from more than 200 entries. In the division 1 category for primary school reception to year 4, Zoe Sivour from St Joseph's Primary School, Renmark was the winner. In the division 2 category for primary school years 5 to 7, Alannah Corman from Monash Primary School won, and the winner of the division 3 category for high school years 8 to 10 was Christian Hanson from Loxton High School.

I would also like to pay tribute to the members of the Fruit Fly Action Group—Ms Hilke Ppiros, Con Poulos, Steve Burdette, Tim Grieger and Jason Size—for their engagement, hard work and collaboration with the government and all governments over a long period of time on this important issue. I would also like to thank Agricultural Bureau executive member, Tony Loffler, and Sandy Loffler, for their generosity with time, cups of tea and superb dried fruit when I spent the morning at their Riverland property.

This government is committed to ensuring that export opportunities for Riverland producers continue to grow into the future. That is why, through the South Australian Research and Development Institute, we engage in essential research work that will help open up new markets, particularly in Asia. SARDI's main research facility forms part of the Waite Campus, which is the largest agricultural R&D facility in the Southern Hemisphere and is truly a world-leading institution.

The Loxton Research Centre is currently undergoing a $7.5 million redevelopment that will provide new opportunities for collaboration between industry and researchers at a national and international level. Whilst in the Riverland, I had the opportunity to meet with SARDI scientists at the Loxton centre to discuss their research into the use of non-chemical treatments which are paving the way for the future growth of South Australia's premium citrus exports.

The research into efficient and affordable non-chemical alternatives for growing and packing citrus is progressing well. We know that consumers and export markets are becoming increasingly vigilant about chemical residues on oranges, lemons and grapefruit, so it is vital our industry, with the help of research scientists, stays ahead of these trends and keeps up with global consumer preferences.

Another particular breakthrough that SARDI scientists are looking to remove is the biosecurity barrier to trade to certify our exports as being free of Fuller's rose weevil, a pest which has proved a problem and which science and the sector are working together to eradicate. This is going well to open up new markets. I commend the work of those involved in the primary industries in the Riverland and the scientists working through SARDI and our other research institutions for the beneficial work they are engaged in.