With the Liberal Government gone and the Labor Government getting to work, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese yesterday announced Senator Murray Watt as the new Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, as well as Emergency Management.

Mr Watt, replacing former minister David Littleproud, has been the Senator for Queensland in 2016, and prior to that represented the electorate of Everton, a collection of suburbs in Brisbane’s north west. 

Mr Watt told the ABC today that workforce shortages and biosecurity risks will be top priorities entering the new role. 

“I’m very conscious that labour shortages will be the number one issue the sector is facing at the moment,” Mr Watt said. 

In Labor’s election campaign, they drew a focus on strengthening the Pacific Labour Scheme to offset the shortage. 

Mr Watt also said his goal is to move Australia up in the value chain and produce more from home, a goal that could contribute to the industry’s $100 billion by 2030 target. 

“We grow the wheat in Australia but we also should be making the flour, making the biscuits, making the chocolate chips that go in them, and extracting the full value from our product,” Mr Watt said. 

So far, the sentiment has been positive from relevant industry bodies.

NSW Farmers President James Jackson said that despite Labor not having as stronger foothold as the Coalition when it comes to rural electorates, a fresh set of eyes could be positive for the sector. 

“I’ll reserve my judgement until I find out how he goes about his job,” Mr Jackson said.

Naturally, there are both agreements and grievances about policies put forward. While Mr Jackson said he sees no issue with the Pacific Labor Scheme so long as they don’t put all their workforce eggs in that basket, some issues aren’t so obvious. 

“We don’t really like what they’re saying on live export…we think that probably doesn’t stack up,” Mr Jackson said, referring to a policy to end live sheep exports in Australia. 

Mr Watt said that while it is on the table, there is no time limit attached, well aware of the logistics that would need rearranging.  

Nature Conservation Council Chief Executive Chris Gambian said that progress in the industry in the coming years will be critical. 

“We look forward to ending the phoney culture war prosecuted by (Mr Watt’s) predecessors,” Mr Gambian said. 

“We stand to build a constructive relationship between industry and conservationists in a range of areas, including dealing more effectively with feral pests and carefully crafting a robust, durable method of managing carbon in productive landscapes,” Mr Gambian said. 

“This morning I asked my father for his advice as a former farmer himself. It was ‘make sure you’ve got good soil and plenty of water’. I’ll be looking forward to making sure we have as much of that as possible,” Mr Watt said.