Small-scale growers around the country are concerned tightened regulations for leafy greens, melons and berries could disadvantage them and in some cases potentially price them out of business.
Regulator Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) says several outbreaks of foodborne illness across the three sectors in the past decade highlighted the need for the new regulations, which it describes as a positive for the industry.
In a statement provided to the ABC, FSANZ says all growers, big and small, will have to abide by new standards on traceability, hygiene and fertilisers.
Eliza Cannon is a small-scale vegetable grower and co-founder of farming business Borrowed Ground, named in recognition of her rented farmland being on Walbunja and Brinja-Yuin country on the New South Wales Far South Coast.
Her 1.6-hectare market garden supplies farmers markets, the local greengrocer and vegetable boxes for families in Moruya and surrounds.
She is a part of a growing group of smaller producers around Australia calling for a scaled approach to the proposed rollout of new safety regulations in early 2025 so that smaller growers don't get hit with the same output costs as bigger operators.
30-month transition
Ms Cannon argues the produce responsible for the outbreaks did not originate from local, small-scale growers.
"The leafy greens came from a massive monoculture crop system and the berries were imported from overseas," she says.
Ms Cannon is also underwhelmed by the level of detail shared by FSANZ or the Department of Primary Industries, which will be responsible for the rollout of the new regulations.
"There is a lot of vague information around what this might look like," Ms Cannon says.
"The main concerns are the cost of it, what it is going to look like and how onerous is it going to be."
FSANZ says "state and territory food authorities are currently engaging with growers, including small-scale farmers".
It says the standards do not come into effect until 2025, allowing for a 30-month transition period for outreach and education.
But Ms Cannon says the details are hard to grasp, and she's uncertain about the future for growers of her size.
"The increased regulation could also mean some smaller growers just stop growing," she says.
Ms Cannon thinks regulations are unnecessary and shouldn't apply to small growers, as their produce can already be easily traced to its source.
"If one of my customers from the farmers market got sick from my bagged lettuce they are going to know where that came from so there's that traceability and accountability," she says.
Instead Ms Cannon thinks public education campaigns about washing your vegetables would be a more effective solution.
'We need to commit to food safety'
Zarmeen Hassan from AUSVEG, the peak industry body for vegetable growers, says it would like to see a uniform approach across all states and territories.
"This is probably going to be most challenging for smaller growers," Ms Hassan says.
"Typically small growers don't have a food safety assurance scheme.
"But irrespective of the size of the grower, we need to commit to food safety.
"So what we're now working on … is to develop material to support smaller growers to become compliant."
Rachel Mackenzie, executive director of Berries Australia, also supports the changes and says they're about reining in rogue producers.
"It will really be targeting those who don't have a food safety system in place," Ms Mackenzie says.
'Traceability is a given'
Ms Cannon has joined farming collective Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance (AFSA) as a committee member.
Alliance president Tammi Jonas also thinks the standards should not apply to small-scale growers.
"These are all standards designed for big, long industrial supply chains. Traceability is a given in a small-scale producer's life," Ms Jonas says.
AFSA is concerned small-time growers would be required to register with their state-level regulator to be able to sell their produce.
But finding the right place to voice their concerns is proving difficult.
"It's difficult to find out who's in charge of implementation at each state level," Ms Jonas says.
"They say they're talking to the industry peak bodies … and they haven't reached out to us at all."
Each state and territory will be required to help growers meet the new standards.
In Ms Cannon's home state of NSW, that role will fall to the NSW Department of Primary Industries' NSW Food Authority.
In a statement to the ABC, the authority says it is developing training material to help growers grasp the new rules.
Despite Ms Cannon's fears the changes could spoil plans for small growers, Ms Mackenzie says the approach to meeting standards will be nuanced.
"We're pretty strong on saying make sure you don't hit a tiny nail with a sledgehammer."
