Anti-Dumping Commission recommends dumping notice, possible dumping duty

The Anti-Dumping Commission has recommended that a dumping notice be published regarding several imported Italian tomato products. Exporters of these products to Australia may be forced to pay a dumping duty.

Vegetable industry body AUSVEG has welcomed the announcement, which was made by Bob Baldwin, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry.

“The commission found that a range of Italian tomato products have been entering the Australian market at prices which are below the cost of production for these items, and the publication of this dumping notice acknowledges this and will hopefully help to prevent further injury to the Australian tomato and vegetable processing industry, which in the past three years has been beset by a spate of factory closures,” said AUSVEG spokesperson Hugh Gurney.

“AUSVEG is calling on the federal government to use the dumping duty collected from these Italian exporters employing questionable tactics to support Australian vegetable and tomato growers and processors who have been injured by this predatory pricing.”

In response to an application lodged by SPC Ardmona, an investigation was commenced in July 2013. SPC said its business had been injured through price suppression, reduced profitability and lower sales volume as a result of the tomatoes being exported to Australia from Italy at margins that constituted dumping.

“Yesterday’s announcement vindicates the Australian industry, which has been struggling to compete on a playing field which in no way could be considered level. The publication of this dumping notice will serve to discourage unscrupulous foreign exporters of vegetables from dumping product onto our shores and injuring our vegetable growers,” said Gurney.

“The last three years have been unfortunately punctuated by the closures of Australian tomato processing factories for Heinz and Rosella, so the local industry has already borne the brunt of dumped Italian product. It is hoped that this dumping notice will allow remaining processors in Australia, like Kagome and SPC Ardmona, to continue employing hundreds of workers and Australian vegetable growers.”