Infrastructure woes risk Asia food boom: CBH

16 January 2014

AUSTRALIA’S biggest grain exporter, CBH Group, has warned crumbling ­infrastructure is costing the nation lucrative exports and threatens the potential benefits on offer from the Asian food boom.

CBH managing director Andrew Crane said it was a “lie” to assume ­Australia would become Asia’s food bowl because rival nations were improving productivity and lowering supply chain costs that were allowing them to steal market share in Asia and the Middle East.

“Our natural freight advantage is not enough to guarantee Australia has a right to benefit from the Asian Century,” Dr Crane said.

“We have to earn it. We are seeing grain being shipped from South America in Capesize vessels. We are seeing Russia improving its grain quality and displacing Australian grain out of the Middle East and proving to be very competitive in to Asia.”

Dr Crane is considering significant expansion on the east coast as CBH, Australia’s largest co-operative, owned by 4300 farmers, steps up efforts to compete with GrainCorp, which has also called for greater government investment in railways to improve Australia’s competitiveness offshore.

Source:

• Infrastructure woes costing Australia in Asia food boom: CBH, Jan 6, Financial Review
• Failing infrastructure risks exports, Jan 6, The Land