Yesterday, the Fresh and Secure Trade Alliance (FASTA) announced a historic $130 million Australian horticulture trade initiative.

The eight-year program, delivered through the federal horticulture Research and Development Corporation, Hort Innovation, and led by the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries will see Aussie export stakeholders and officials join forces to help protect and grow Aussie horticultural exports.

There are two major focus areas of the research program:

• Delivering robust and timely datasets to underpin market access negotiations: State and Territory governments will work together to standardise their approach to collecting phytosanitary, or pest and disease management, data. This data demonstrates that Australia’s produce is pest-free while also ensuring the impact of phytosanitary treatments on fruit quality will be minimised. These datasets will be used to open new export markets for Australian produce and improve access to existing ones.
• Increasing understanding about fruit fly and other key pests: A multidiscipline, multi-organisational research team of over 70 scientists from across Australia will test new technologies for tracking pests, trapping pests and reducing pest pressure. The eight-year program will increase Australia’s research capabilities in pest management research and facilitate world-class research.

Some of the key takeaways of the program are:

• The national program unites state governments and several universities to strengthen our biosecurity and uphold Australia's gold-standard in pest management.
• More than 70 scientists from across Australia will test new technologies to improve our understanding and management of fruit fly and other key pests. 
• The initiative will also develop robust datasets, that will open new export markets for fresh Aussie produce and strengthen access to existing markets. 

Melons Australia, Johnathon Davey on his thoughts of this historic program:

“We are excited by the recent news released from FASTA, and we look forward to being more involved over the coming months. The Melon industry has several target markets for new access, we will seek support in gaining access to these markets from this important project (South Korea, India and Vietnam). Already, 8% of Melon production is being exported with industry strategic planning looking to increase this to 20% of production in the coming years. We await to be informed of the governance model behind the establishment of FASTA and remain ready to engage whenever by whatever means possible.”