Member for Mallee Dr Anne Webster has slammed Labor’s new fresh food tax after it was introduced in Parliament earlier today, as farming groups’ opposition to the proposal builds up.

“Labor continues to make a mess of its new fresh food tax during a cost-of-living crisis,” Dr Webster said, “Labor’s treatment of our farmers is shameful. Farmers will inevitably be forced to pass these costs onto consumers, so the tax will absolutely be felt by families at the checkout.”

National Farmers Federation President and Mallee resident David Jochinke said the move was “utterly staggering” given the level of opposition to the policy, adding “Everyone from the Productivity Commission, to the Australian National University and the Freight & Trade Alliance has labelled this policy a dud. It makes zero economic sense. No farming group wants it. It’s an administrative nightmare. And now we even have the importers themselves calling to scrap it and send them the bill instead!”

Labor will set the tax rate as a proportion of an industry’s average gross value of production over a three-year period, however the Bill lacks any detail of the cost to farmers on how the levy will be collected.

“Farmers are still in the dark about this new levy – Labor still needs to come up with exact costs and the rate farmers will be taxed. This has created more unnecessary confusion and anxiety,” Dr Webster said, “Why does this Albanese Labor government want to tax Australian farmers to pay for foreigners to compete against them on our shores?”

The National Farmers’ Federation also say they are cautious about an eleventh-hour Sustainable Biosecurity Advisory Panel set up by Labor.

Dr Webster said Labor should drop the tax and instead mirror the Coalition’s importer container levy.

“The Nationals stand by our farmers and I and my colleagues will continue to fight this senseless new tax.”