New Western Potatoes in sales role

A grower-owned company, Western Potatoes Limited, will take responsibility for the commercial activities of the Western Australian potato industry as part of a major restructuring to the controversial regulation of the sector.

 Each potato grower in the State receiving one share in WPL, a public unlisted company.

It will own the plant breeders’ rights for seed potatoes and handle the export of seed potatoes and other potatoes out of WA.

WPL will also be responsible for the strategic planning of the industry and for liaising with the peak grower body, the Potato Growers Association of WA.

Ross Taylor, who is also the chairman of the Australia-Indonesia Business Council in WA, said the new body would allow the industry to improve its export efforts.

In his former role as the WA Government’s regional director to Indonesia, Mr Taylor played a significant role in helping a Western Australian grower build a seed potato market in that country.

Lewis Cross is to be the chairman of WPL and Ian Carter, a potato grower from Marybrook, will be the other director.

A new CEO is expected to be appointed once the new company is incorporated.

Potato Growers Association of WA executive officer Jim Turley said it was just a matter of the paperwork being processed before the new company was formed.

The new company is the result of the WA Government’s plan to split the WA Potato Marketing Corporation into a regulatory body and a commercial arm.

That split was a result of a review of the Potato Marketing Act last year to ensure compliance with national competition policy.

The review recommended a separation of regulatory and commercial activities.

Growers had also expressed concern that the Potato Marketing Corporation was responsible for marketing WA’s potatoes – it owns the Western Potatoes brand name – as well as regulating how the market operated.

For years WA’s potato growers have been subjected to a quota system that has resulted, some argue, in a reduction of varieties available to consumers and a lack of competition in the market.

Cabinet decided to retain regulation of the industry but change the operation of the Potato Marketing Corporation to ensure it complied with the Trade Practices Act and the Competitive Neutrality Principle.

Agriculture Minister Kim Chance said the industry would continue to be managed by the PMC.

The corporation’s new board was appointed in October and is made up of Deborah Pitter as chairwoman, Sam Alameri, Andrew Tempra, David Sash and Bert Russell. Eddy Atchison was appointed to represent potato merchants.

They will administer changes to the operation of the corporation that came from the review.

Mr Chance announced the formation of the new regulatory system and grower-owned marketing body in July, saying the changes would improve the effectiveness of the Potato Marketing Act.

“In doing so, the public benefits that derive from the orderly marketing arrangement will be retained, while enhancing the capacity of the industry to provide consumers with a wider choice of quality potato varieties at nationally competitive prices,” he said.