August 20, 2008
 

Australian wheat harvest starts as regulator mulls licenses

An unusually early start to Australia's annual wheat harvest has left regulator Wheat Exports Australia still processing applications from companies seeking accreditation as bulk wheat exporters.

 

Newly harvested wheat was delivered Monday into GrainCorp Ltd's storage facilities at the central Queensland town of Emerald, a spokesman for the company said late Tuesday (August 19, 2008).

 

Crops were planted unusually early, in January and February in central Queensland - the northernmost growing area in Australia - and about 10 percent of the crop in the area is now ready to harvest, the spokesman said.

 

Central Queensland can produce several hundred thousand tonnes of wheat in a normal year. Most of the Australian wheat crop is harvested in November and December, though crops in northern growing areas typically mature earlier.

 

GrainCorp, along with other Australian grain companies and some international commodity trading businesses, applied to Wheat Exports Australia for accreditation as bulk wheat exporters after a new deregulated system of exports was introduced July 1.

 

"Severe penalties will apply for exporting wheat in bulk without accreditation," Agriculture Minister Tony Burke said while introducing the new wheat export legislation to the federal parliament.

 

Under the new arrangements, Wheat Exports Australia administers the system and has the authority to grant, vary, suspend or cancel accreditation, which can only be issued to "fit and proper" companies or cooperatives.

 

Former monopoly operator AWB Ltd. is allowed to export bulk wheat until Sept. 30, according to a spokesman for the regulator.

 

Wheat Exports Australia is aware of "the importance and urgency of the accreditation process" and is working to clarify the situation "as soon as we can," a spokesman said.