THE man who has overseen the past three WoolPolls has called on growers to vote for a zero per cent levy at the next WoolPoll in November and force a major overhaul of Australian Wool Innovation.
In an opinion piece written for Rural Press, Dr John Keniry said a zero per cent levy vote would “provide impetus for change”.
“The current two per cent has just been wasted by AWI so we need to force some change and look at fundamental restructuring and not just tinkering.”
Dr John Keniry, who chaired the 2000, 2003 and 2006 WoolPolls and is a former director of AWI, said it was an important time for the wool industry “which in my opinion is in real crisis”.
Dr Keniry said he had been consulting with fellow wool growers and agribusiness consultants on peak body reform,
And he said the message he is getting from these talks, which was echoed in the recent Arche Consulting review of AWI’s performance, was: there is support for radical structural reform and change to a skills-based election process.
He suggested comprehensive reform could include merging AWI into Meat and Livestock Australia to cut costs by having a single board.
“We have got to get change in AWI and I don’t think the present board can lead that change so before people vote at WoolPoll ask the question can the money they have to spend on marketing really increase the price of wool,” Dr Keniry said.
“I would think not.”
Dr Keniry acknowledged that his negative stance towards AWI could be perceived as a “bad case of sour grapes” having not been re-elected to the board last year. However, he said his opinion on restructuring the election process had always been voiced during his time on the board.
AWI chief executive Brenda McGahan said she recognised the “deficiencies” in its “inadequate” company governance framework outlined in the Arche consulting performance review.
The wool levy paid by Australian woolgrowers who have paid $100 or more in wool sale levy in the three years to June this year, has been at 2pc since 2000.
This week, WoolPoll panel member and Victorian Stud Merino president Jock MacRae urged producers to have their say in the coming WoolPoll, noting that a levy was a “not an insignificant” amount.
Mr MacRae said producers needed to be beware of the recent New Zealand wool levy vote where only 39pc of wool producers voted – and 54pc of those voted down a proposed levy amount.
Email a friend