4 November 2024
CropLife Australia welcomes the Government’s response to the ongoing reviews of the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA).
The APVMA has a reputation worldwide for being a leading, independent scientific regulator but the reviews have identified the imperative to further improve its operations.
“The Government’s response creates the opportunity for the APVMA to evolve into the pesticides regulator the Australian community, the plant science industry and its farming sector deserves. I am pleased the Government has acknowledged the APVMA has already started on a road toward this outcome,” said Mr Matthew Cossey, Chief Executive Officer of CropLife Australia, the national peak industry organisation for the plant science sector.
Section 1A of the Agvet Code outlines APVMA’s mandate to apply the best available science to ensure the safety of the community and the environment while providing farmers with the agricultural chemical inputs necessary to be sustainable and profitable in a changing environment.
“The use of crop protection products by our farmers is essential to growing the safe, nutritious and best value food that supports Australians and contributes to the international competitiveness of our agriculture sector in global markets.
“Policy settings that support the access to new plant science innovations and the safe use of pesticides create downward pressure on the cost of living, grow our economy and enable farmers to be more environmentally sustainable.
CropLife welcomes the Government’s commitment to consult on the important areas of reform identified within the response. This will allow a better understanding of the role the regulatory system plays, while improving performance against all areas of its regulatory responsibilities, including providing farmers with timely access to new innovative pesticides.
“This should ensure truly Australian solutions to the challenges outlined, learning from international experience, while avoiding the flawed and failed policy proposals of the past and protecting the success of our existing regulatory system.
“The opportunity to further develop a modern science-based risk management system is essential.
CropLife is concerned that the response has failed to accept the Rapid Evaluation’s call for Government to increase its contribution to the delivery of the public good functions the APVMA delivers. The APVMA is presently the only regulator in the OECD that funds its operations completely from an industry fee and levy cost recovery.
“The best way for the Government to oversee the evolution of the APVMA into the modern regulator is to increase the appropriation to the APVMA to support the functions that allow it to maintain the trust of the Australian community. This would align to the Australian Government’s Charging Framework and is consistent with Government funding of the Therapeutic Goods Administration.
Now is the time for the Government to draw a line under the past two years of disruption and to provide the environment in which the APVMA can confidently engage with the community and industry towards delivering the benefit all Australian’s deserve from its operations.
“CropLife looks forward to being an important partner to Government as part of this process,” Mr. Cossey concluded.
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