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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2023-05-31 Daily Xml
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Sayer, Ms. C

The Hon. N.J. CENTOFANTI (Leader of the Opposition) (16:51): I move:

That this council—

1. Acknowledges Catherine Sayer and her contribution as Chief Executive Officer of Food South Australia;

2. Celebrates the South Australian food and beverage sector as a key contributor to the South Australian economy;

3. Recognises Catherine's work in the South Australian food and beverage sector more broadly as well as in the non-profit community; and

4. Wishes Catherine all the best in her next role.

South Australia has garnered a well-deserved reputation for being a global leader in fine foods. Our produce is the epitome of high quality, with unquestioned food safety standards and simple ingredients that allow flavours and textures to shine. For the last 12 years, the woman taking those flavours to the world has been Food SA Chief Executive Officer, Catherine Sayer.

Since October 2010, Ms Sayer has built and led a team of experts spanning Adelaide, Japan and China. Through Food SA, they have delivered programs across areas of market development, capacity and capability building and advocacy for the food and beverage industry. Catherine is well recognised as the key representative and the voice of industry to government. Ms Sayer's strong stakeholder engagement skills have been crucial to positioning our state on the global market.

Ms Sayer has previously held key industry roles as a member of the Agribusiness Council of SA, a member of the Fisheries Council of SA and a prior Chair of the SA Lobster Advisory. Ms Sayer is currently a director of Seafood Industry Australia, the Chair of KIN Premium Australian Seafoods and Chair for the past 12 years of the Tropical Tuna Management Advisory Committee. She is a member and graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Food South Australia is our state's peak body for the food and beverage industry. Membership is open to producers, processors and manufacturers, as well as industry associations and service providers. They exist to support, sustain and grow food and beverage businesses. Ms Sayer and her team have been successfully doing this for well over a decade, identifying and evaluating new markets and trends and connecting businesses to new customers.

The food and beverage sector contributes far beyond our local market. South Australian food and food products enjoy global recognition and are in high demand. As an export market, our food exports are an essential factor of our state's economy and a major component of our goodwill. Our meat, seafood, grains, wines, processed foods and horticultural produce generate substantial export dollars. These products have been pushed and lauded by Catherine Sayer and her team at Food SA across the globe.

In the 2019-20 financial year, our state's food and wine exports were valued at $4.9 billion. Food is essential to the South Australian economy. It invigorates agricultural productivity, increases our export potential, raises tourism appeal, lifts job creation and adds value to our processing and production. Our food and wine industry has become a major drawcard for visitors. South Australia's reputation for high-quality produce and gourmet experiences attracts domestic and international tourists alike. This reputation supports not only the food and wine sector but accommodation, hospitality, transportation, the arts and other tourism-related endeavours.

If I may, I would like to indulge the chamber with some thoughts on our famous food-producing regions and sectors. Starting west, Eyre Peninsula is internationally renowned for its seafood. Tuna, varieties of marine finfish, abalone, mussels, oysters, prawns, marron and now a growing algae and seaweed industry all base themselves in the pristine waters between Ceduna and Whyalla. Inland, we have our extensive dry-cropping grains belt, producing tonnage of wheat, barley, lentils and lucerne to name just a few crops for both domestic markets and export.

Heading to our central coastal zones, we find more fishing industries, such as cockles, sardines, kingfish, mulloway and snapper. Our Indigenous foods are a swiftly growing sector. From proteins such as kangaroo and emu to endemic horticulture like the quandong tree, wattleseeds, finger limes and bush tomatoes, there seems to be no halt to the demand of these foods and their uses. We see our pastoral zones spreading right across the state, producing top-quality lamb. I admit if I had not eaten fairly recently I would be getting quite hungry talking about and thinking about all of these foods.

The Adelaide Hills, Adelaide Plains and Fleurieu are marketed globally as a gourmet tourism destination, with some of the best summer fruits going. Tourist meccas like Hahndorf service thousands of visitors every week for strawberries and chocolates, and some of the best country bakeries are tucked in towns like Clarendon and Port Elliot. In the South-East of South Australia, the premium proteins continue with more export-quality lamb and our famous rock lobster industry. We can find salmon, mullet, giant mulloway, squid, tommies, whiting, garfish, flathead and trevally along the coast.

In my home district of the Riverland, we see some of the world's best citrus crops, stone fruit, olive oil and honey and the bulk of our beautiful almond orchards. I have not even touched upon our famous winemakers, distilleries and craft beer industries. Clare, McLaren Vale and Barossa have all become global brands in a competitive space.

Once again, I would like to thank Catherine Sayer for her incredible work over the past 12 years as the CEO of Food SA. She has assisted in bringing new markets to our growers and our producers. This leads to more jobs, more production and greater growth for South Australia and our South Australian economy.

Catherine is also someone that I personally have a great deal of respect and admiration for. Over the past few years, I have got to know Catherine professionally, and I have admired her strength of character, her tenacity and her approachability. She is smart, she is capable, and I know that the South Australian food industry will miss her dearly. I wish Catherine all the best in her new role supporting Australian family businesses. I hope she is able to continue her contribution to community through her board positions with Camp Quality and Glenelg Football Club. With that, I commend the motion to the chamber.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. I.K. Hunter.

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