Elders chief Mark Allison refutes idea recent trade barriers to beef and barley are retribution for wanting COVID inquiry.

The head of one of the nation’s biggest agribusinesses has hit back at claims China’s recent trade sanctions on Australian beef and barley are payback over the Morrison Government’s push for a global inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. Elders chief executive Mark Allison said, though disappointing, China’s 80.5 per cent tariffs on barley and the suspension of four Eastern States abattoirs were the normal “rough and tumble” of global trade, rather than any counteractions in a diplomatic spat. He said it was in China’s right as a sovereign nation to take such action and Australia would do the same in a similar situation. “In my mind, I don’t blend it all together or see (these actions) as a counter action or punishment. I see it as the rough and tumble of global trade,” he said. As a board member of Grain Growers Limited, Mr Allison, pictured, was involved in the industry response to the Chinese dumping investigation, which began 18 months ago and led to this week’s tariff decision. “It has come to a conclusion and we’d put our best efforts in as an industry and Government to try to explain why we believe we weren’t dumping barley into China” he said. “Obviously it’s disappointing but fundamentally it’s their decision and they’ve made their call.” The barley tariff issue is similar to India’s decision in 2018 to impose up to 70 per cent tariffs on Australian chickpeas. “The Indian example is a reasonable case study to follow,” Mr Allison said. “Although we had been looking for alternative markets for chickpeas, with that announcement the chickpea price dropped, and farmers who had put crops in were caught out. “We then looked for, and identified, alternative markets in Bangladesh and Pakistan and just got on with it. “It’s not dissimilar to the China issue. “We have been sourcing alternative barley markets and have nominated Vietnam and Saudi Arabia and some others as potentials, obviously with a price implication as there was with chickpeas.” On the abattoir suspensions, Mr Allison pointed to three years ago when the Chinese Government raised similar issues over labelling non-compliance at six Australian processors. “The same thing happened in 2017 where we had processing facilities put on notice to improve those particular areas,” he said. “Over a few months they did improve those areas and were back on line.” While the focus has been on Australia losing access to a major trading partner, the Elders chief said there could be positive outcomes achieved elsewhere as global trade relationships shuffle. “Although we have fallen out of favour in supplying barley to China, and that China is likely to get barley out of Canada and the US, in a similar sense the Canadian canola source is also being put under question by China,” Mr Allison said. “Maybe there will be a favourable outcome for Australia on the canola front.”