For another year, Tasmanian potato growers have reached an impasse with chip manufacturer Simplot. They are in dispute over a new contract that could make growers liable for future chip recalls, long after the potatoes have left the farm, as Laurissa Smith reports for ABC News.
Simplot has agreed to meet with the grower committee on Friday. A bitter stalemate between frozen chip manufacturer Simplot and its Tasmanian suppliers has once again escalated, just weeks out from planting early potatoes for French fries.
Earlier this month, the US multinational pulled the pin on price talks for the upcoming season. Growers rejected Simplot’s proposed price reduction, resulting in a 57 per cent drop in returns for their potatoes from two years ago.
Potatoes are the most valuable agriculture sector in the state, but they’re also the most expensive crop to grow, costing around $25,000 a hectare or 42 cents a kilo. The price Simplot wants to pay farmers this season is between 46 and 49 cents a kilo.
Farmers aren’t just concerned with the price, but with their treatment by Simplot. The company has cut potato volumes and cancelled a number of contracts.
Then, in an unprecedented move, Simplot bypassed the grower committee that negotiates the contract on behalf of around 150 farmers. Instead, it approached individual growers to sign incomplete contracts before they viewed a new supply agreement outlining changes to terms and conditions.
Source: ABC News. Full story here
Image: Tasmanian farmers and multinational chip manufacture Simplot are yet to reach a price agreement for the upcoming potato season. Credit ABC New, Laurissa Smith
Discover more from Potato News Today
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
