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<pre>AUSTRALIAN OLIVE GROWERS

Below is some information that may be useful when considering supporting or
not supporting a National Olive Levy in Australia.
If you wish to discuss any aspects of this email, please contact Gerry King
on FREE CALL 1800 151 672.

Is the AOA considered the Peak Industry Body?:

The AOA has long been recognised at the peak industry body, as they have
members from right across Australia. The Federal Govt recognises this; the
industry needs to have a peak body, they have been established for about 10
years. The Olive Levy process must not be confused with the AOA and its
functions as they are two separate issues. Grievances with the AOA are best
discussed with the AOA President or Directors. If you wish to discuss the
Levy please contact Gerry King on the number above.

Concerns that the AOA is trying to rush the levy through:

The idea of a National levy was discussed at the AOA level over 4 years ago,
and has formed part of the Strategic Plan for the Olive Industry. The idea
of a Levy has been discussed in earnest for the last two years by at least
three States, SA, VIC and WA. Horticulture Australia advised the various
states that they would prefer to fund a National Levy strategy rather than
individual States. Victoria and SA had meetings last year to discuss the
process and a Levy Committee was formed. When OSA President Lisa Rowntree
was elected to the AOA Board, her portfolio became the National Levy. The
idea of a Levy has been discussed in various circles for quite some time and
it was mentioned at the AOA conference in Brisbane last year that
Consultative Meetings would commence in November. This was delayed as the
committee felt that the lead up to Christmas was not a good time to start
discussing levies. The Consultative Workshop Planning meeting was held in
January 2004 and the first of the Consultative Meetings began in late
February. Kingsgrove Consulting is the company contracted to Horticulture
Australia (HAL) to conduct the workshops and prepare the report to HAL.

The Levy Amount is Onerous?:.

There has been much speculation and hype about the amount to be charged.
The Levy Committee are proposing $10.00 per tonne of fruit weighed at the
processor, which equates to $0.06 cents per litre. Earlier on there was
discussion about different amounts, but through the natural progression of
meetings the committee have come up with a number that they believe is fair
and equitable.
As none of this money can be used to "prop-up" associations, the Levy
Committee are also proposing (on a separate ballot) that we collect $2.00
per tonne or $0.002 cents per litre to help fund the work of the National
body and/or State bodies. This contribution is "refundable" and if the
grower does not wish to assist with funding of Associations, then all they
need to do is fill in a form and send it to the relevant bodies (either
State/national) and ask for a refund - no questions asked.
It is important to note that implementing the levy is not designed to line
the purse of the AOA or any other Association. What happens with the AOA is
separate to the whole levy process. Associations have expressed a desire
to put forward the idea of a VC to growers as it is recognised in the
Industry that Associations are less effective when relying solely on the
efforts of Volunteers. Funding would allow Industry Associations to engage
the services of IDO's Industry Development Officers.

Once again please understand that the voting for these two levies will be
independent of each other meaning you can vote for one not the other or
preferably both.

There is not enough time for adequate Q&A at the Consultative Workshops:

The workshops are 2 hours long. Kingsgrove Consulting's presentation takes
about 45 minutes. Growers are asked to write down their questions on the
handouts provided. At the end of the presentation Gerry spends as long as
is needed going through grower's questions and concerns. The Levy Committee
have scheduled 1 meeting per day so that there is ample time to discuss the
proposed levy. We are in no rush to get away and prepared to stay as long
as is needed. The Q&A sessions are usually recorded on tape, to assist with
the final report to HAL.
Due to budget restraints we had to initially limit the number of workshops
in each state. However, we have since spoken with HAL and informed them
that some states are requesting more meetings and that we feel we should, if
they want us, hold more meetings. HAL have been informed that we will end
up over budget, but if you want more meetings (within reason), please advise
Gerry King on the number above. There is also the opportunity of having one
of the Collaborators in each state, that work with the Levy Committee,
attend your local meetings as well, once again submit your request to Gerry.

Who is considered an Olive Grower?:

The Levy Committee was advised that we needed to have a way of determining
who is actually a grower. It was suggested that we use a growers ABN. If you
don't have an ABN you just need to sign a Declaration on the bottom of the form
stating that you are indeed a grower and is
sufficient. Investors in Managed Investment Schemes are also entitled to
vote, as they are recognised as growers by the ATO, however, in order for
them to be eligible to vote they need to return a "Voter Registration Form"
to Gerry King. The Levy Committee anticipates that there will be quite a
few that don't want to go to the effort of returning the form, which will
make them ineligible to vote. MIS investors cannot nominate a proxy (eg
their management company) to vote on their behalf, they need to do it
independently and directly through Kingsgrove Consulting.

What is the Total cost of current research:

The Levy Committee have asked HAL and RIRDC to let us know how much they
have spent on the industry so far. HAL have contributed around $900,000
since 1996 for various projects such as:

* RIRDC/HHAL collaborative R&D program
* Establishment of an olive industry sensory panel for oil quality
analysis
* Generation of data to support off-label permits in olives
* Study tour to investigate production systems in SA and Vic
* Study tour IOOC Madrid & California
* Commercial viability of existing olive varieties for various
Australian climates
* Establishing the technical foundations for a viable olive oil
industry
* Improving the Australian olive industry through intensive practice
in the Mediterranean
* Preliminary selection of superior olive cultivars adapted to
Australian Conditions
* Assessment of olive yield and oil quality and cultivar
identification

RIRDC have spent close to $1.3 million dollars since 1996 on a wide range of
projects.

What is the cost of proposed research?:

RIRDC together with the AOA have a Research & Development Plan for the
Australian Olive Industry 2003 - 2008, this can be downloaded from the RIRDC
website or from the AOA website. The Levy Committee have attempted to keep
the cost of the levy down so as not to cause undue hardship on growers,
however the industry will need to adjust its priorities to fit the
forecasted revenue. It will mean that in the short term the olive industry
won't achieve as many of the outcomes as stated in the R&D Plan, however by
2009 when the crop is significantly increased, there will be more money for
R&D and more importantly Marketing & Promotion. If the Levy Committee were
to have done it the other way around, eg: work out how much the R&D Plan
requires and they adjust the levy to fit that amount, the levy would be too
high, causing many businesses to become unviable.

In short the main priorities identified in the RIRDC & AOA Plan are: (In no
particular order)

* Immediate action of development of a Levy funding process
* National quality standards and enforceable regulations to deal with
concerns about truth in labelling and adulteration
* Strategies to ensure effective pollination
* Cost competitive (mechanical) harvest technologies
* Residue studies to support chemical registrations compatible with
IPM strategies
* Irrigation management strategies to minimise water use and optimise
yield and quality
* Evaluation of the performance and agronomic characteristics of tree
varieties and the resultant oil characteristics within the context of the
major climatic zones of Australia
* National communication strategy for effective and timely
communication with key industry stakeholders
* Worlds best practice waste utilisation and management schemes for
oil and table olive processors.

This is not to say that these will be the only projects that get funding.
Each state can, and probably will, have identified issues that relate
specifically to them that they would like to see addressed. All groups from
any sector of the Olive industry can submit to the OLIVE INDUSTRY ADVISORY
COUNCIL a funding proposal for a particular project.

Is this R&D really necessary and relevant?

Well that really depends on who you ask, not everyone will agree with
funding every type of project every time.
Marketing and promoting EVOO in Australia was seen as a high priority. The
mushroom growers spend 3 million dollars annually on Promotion, such as
brown paper bags at supermarkets to put the mushrooms in, magazine ads,
recipe leaflets etc and have achieved a 15% growth per annum annually for 10
years.
It is conservatively estimated that in 2009 we will have 145,000 tonnes of
fruit. If we are going to end up with approximately 24 million litres of
oil in 2009 (based on 15% oil yield) then we are going to need a very strong
and good marketing campaign to shift the oil. There is a lot of work to do
to educate Australian consumers on the benefits of fresh authentic
Australian EVOO.
HAL match dollar for dollar on R&D, but not for Marketing/Promotion. At the
workshops we are suggesting a 60/40 split. 40% for R&D, matched and 60%
Marketing & Promotion (unmatched). There has been some useful feedback
about this split, some suggesting 70/30 etc. What ever the split ends up
being it has to be agreed to before the vote as once it is set it cannot be
changed without going through the whole consultation process again.
Similarly, the levy amount can not be changed up or down without going
through the process

Who collects the money - what happens to it?:

The Levy Committee are proposing that the money be collected at the
processor and remitted quarterly (or what ever suits) to the Levies Revenue
Service, AFFA. The Olive Industry Advisory Committee which is a
sub-committee of HAL will meet 3 or 4 times a year to discuss the priorities
for the coming year. The Chairperson of this committee has to be
independent. Initially the AOA (as the peak body) will be asked to nominate
some people to sit on the committee. The term is usually 2 or 3 years with
half turn over. There would need to be a suitably qualified representative
from each state, a large grower, a small grower, a processor, a harvester, a
marketer, an AOA Board Member.

What is the Ballot process?:

The ballot will be conducted by the SA Electoral office, at arms length from
the AOA or any other organisation, Voters must be registered to vote; the
Voter Registration Form must be received by Kingsgrove Consulting by C.O.B.
9th April 2004 (free post, free fax). Voting will open on Monday 19th April
and will run for 1 month, closing on Friday 21st May. Results will be
published in "The Australian" on Saturday 29th May and will also be
available on the HAL and AOA websites.

What about large growers rejecting the levy?:

MIS and large growers we have contacted so far are very supportive of a
"reasonable" levy. Doug Pollard from Barkworth has said that he is more
than happy for a levy at 0.06 per litre or $10.00 per tonne, in fact had
some good ideas about it as well. Mark Troy from Inglewood Olive Processors
can also see the benefits of a National Levy. Originally there was some
concern generated when the rumour machine was working overtime, misquoting
information and generally "unproductively" stirring the pot. After people
have attended workshops or spoken with one of the Levy Committee members
they feel a lot more at ease.
The meetings so far in QLD & the Fleurieu have been very positive! There
have many good points raised that we are investigating at the moment, and we
thank those growers who came to meetings and offered constructive comment.
The Committee are looking forward to discussing this proposal with ACT/NSW
growers in Canberra, Sydney and Tamworth next week.
The Levy Committee encourages Australian Growers not make up your minds one
way or the other until you have had a chance to attend a meeting and
understand the "facts". Please feel free to contact Gerry King on the FREE
Call number above or personally at a Consultative Meeting.

Lisa Rowntree
Chairman
National Olive Levy

Gerry King
Kingsgrove Consulting
PO Box 7154
West Lakes
South Australia 5021
Phone +61 8 8268 1066
Fax +61 8 8268 8922
Mobile 0412 804 805

http://www.management-consultants.co...asp?Name=gking
_____

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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<pre>--- In OliveOil@yahoogroups.com, "Gerry King" <gerry@k...>
wrote:
> AUSTRALIAN OLIVE GROWERS
>
> Below is some information that may be useful when
considering supporting or
> not supporting a National Olive Levy in Australia.
> If you wish to discuss any aspects of this email, please contact
Gerry King
> on FREE CALL 1800 151 672.
>
> The Levy Amount is Onerous?:.
>
> There has been much speculation and hype about the amount
to be charged.

Olive growers face new R&D levy

4 Feb 2004

The Australian Olive Association says growers must consider a
proposed levy to fund R&D projects and marketing initiatives.
The R&D levy would be mandatory and most likely range from
$20-$40 a tonne (2-4 cents a kilogram), AOA president Paul
Miller said. The levy would be collected by processors and
matched dollar for dollar by the Federal Government.

Mr Miller said the funds are needed for research projects into
pest control, harvesting and processing techniques, genetics,
and for marketing.

The AOA will hold levy workshops and a postal ballot will be held
in April. The industry's major growers and processors want to
have a say in nominating R&D projects. One grower agreed the
industry needs a mandatory levy but said it's unfair if a grower
with 1,000 trees has the same voting entitlements as a grower
with one million trees.

Weekly Times, 4/2/04, page 9.

http://www.infarmation.com.au/news/g...rticle9746.asp
>
> Lisa Rowntree
> Chairman
> National Olive Levy
>
> Gerry King
> Kingsgrove Consulting
> PO Box 7154
> West Lakes
> South Australia 5021
> Phone +61 8 8268 1066
> Fax +61 8 8268 8922
> Mobile 0412 804 805
http://www.management-consultants.co...asp?Name=gking
> _____
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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