The Australian Banana Growers’ Council (ABGC) has rejected calls to import fruit from the Philippines, saying the imports are unnecessary and would create serious risk for the Australian industry.

The Federal Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry has today announced a review of quarantine arrangements following demands from the Philippines to allow banana imports into Australia.

ABGC CEO, Leanne Erakovic, said imports were unnecessary and would place the nation’s banana industry under unacceptable threat.

“We have never needed to import bananas, and we don’t need to start now. Australian growers produce more than enough high-quality fruit to supply the entire domestic market,” Ms Erakovic said.

“That entire production could be put at risk through the entry of exotic diseases if overseas-grown bananas are brought into Australia.”

Australia’s banana industry is a $1.3 billion powerhouse, supplying households year-round and underpinning the nation’s food bowl. The industry directly supports more than 540 growers and 18,000 workers, whose livelihoods depend on secure, sustainable production.

Australia also remains free from many of the world’s most devastating banana diseases — something few other nations can claim. The ABGC warns that opening the door to imports risks introducing these diseases, which could cause widespread and irreversible damage to local production.

“There is no quarantine measure that can reduce any imported disease risk to zero. Almost safe is not safe enough. Allowing imports creates a pathway for diseases that could devastate our industry and the regional communities it supports.

As we’ve seen with other introduced pests such as fire ants and cane toads, once introduced, they are extremely hard, if not impossible, to eradicate,” Ms Erakovic said.

She stressed that the quality of Australian bananas — and the consumer confidence that comes with it — must not be compromised.

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