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Fruit fallout sours future
12 Jul 2004
Queensland's Department of Primary Industries and Evergreen Farms - the property at the centre of the citrus canker crisis - have resolved their stand-off. The owners of Evergreen have agreed to the destruction of up to 8,000 trees. They had earlier sought a Supreme Court injunction to stop DPI officials entering their property.
Agreement has also been reached to resume interstate trade of Queensland citrus fruit from areas outside the Emerald and Gayndah-Mundubbera regions. However, despite the breakthrough, producers are looking at $10 million in losses until interstate markets are re-established - probably not for a week or two.
In Emerald, locals are beginning to count the cost of the recent quarantine. Shire mayor Peter Maguire said the citrus farms and the workers they attract are paramount to the area's commerce, which is now suffering losses of $2 million a week. Queensland accounts for over 16 per cent of the citrus grown in Australia, which is worth $420 million to the nation's economy.
The Courier-Mail, 10/7/04.
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