It's time to Weigh in on Cut Flower Imports
By David Blewden, Acting NZFGA President
If thieves in the night were sneaking into your nursery and stealing your flowers – what would you do? Would you stand by idly and do nothing or would you react? Would you turn a blind eye, shrug your shoulders, wring your hands and accept that there was nothing to be done? Of course you wouldn’t – not unless you had the backbone of a jellyfish. It is inconceivable that any grower, with a spine would stand by and watch their business being undermined and threatened in such a manner. Yet this is precisely what we are doing today. We are failing to respond to a threat as real as a thief in the night. Flowers might not be disappearing out of our fields and greenhouses but the result is as damaging and equally unfair.
As growers we have invested heavily in our businesses, our knowledge and our abilities to grow magnificent flowers. We have spent years developing skills and specialist techniques that few others possess. We are fortunate to grow in a horticultural paradise blessed with a temperate climate, fertile soils and abundant water. Many of us have staff as well as our own families to take care of. There is no way we should stand by and allow all that we have worked so long and hard for be threatened. The cut flower importer with nothing more invested than a few dollars in a phone and a computer might not be a thief in a balaclava hiding in the shadows, but the results of some of their importing activities are just as damaging.
New Zealand flower growers are resilient, resourceful and persistent. We have shown over many years our ability to compete successfully on both the domestic and international stages. We embrace the opportunities that free trade and an unregulated open New Zealand economic environment provides. We don’t back down in the face of genuine and fair competition. We back ourselves in a fair fight. Today though, we are more like Joseph Parker going 15 rounds with one arm tied behind his back against an opponent, not only with two good arms but a third invisible one that is silently and insidiously inflicting the real damage.
When it comes to Imported flowers, we are like a 1 armed boxer focused on the gloves in our face while failing to see the invisible force that is doing the real damage; slowly and surly wearing us down, draining our energy. The good news is that we don’t have to fight one handed, an opponent with an invisible third arm. We can cut it off, free up our own arm, even up the playing field and make it level and fair once again.
The invisible third arm is of course subsidies. We don’t have them but many growers, especially in India most certainly do . There is no doubt that we can compete very successfully against flowers produced on the other side of the world, but when the invisible third arm gives the imports a huge unfair price advantage then things potentially get a bit difficult for us.
At our event in Christchurch on the 17th October, growers will be presented with import figures and landed stem values for imported cut flowers that simply defy belief and should be of concern to all, regardless of the crops grown. The Indian cut flower industry grew 300% in ten years and growers enjoy a range of incentives and subsidies that we in New Zealand can only dream about. NZFGA believes that due to these subsidies, the landed stem prices being reported for many imported cut flowers do not reflect a true international market price. Our industry and your financial viability is being damaged as a result. The good news is we do not have to stand by idly and watch our industry stolen from under our feet. There is something we can do. There is legislation we can use to protect ourselves. It will take grower unity to release the arm tied behind our backs, and it will take some money. If you feel your business and your industry is worth fighting for, then you need to be in Christchurch on the 17th October. To register for this vital conference and 'weigh in' contact [email protected]
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