Sealord denies dumping fish in Australia

Press, 21 April 1984, Page 3

Sealord denies dumping fish in Australia

PA Nelson Charges of fish-dumping by Sealord Products, Ltd, in Australia on Thursday have been denied by the chief executive, Mr Graham France. Western Australian fishermen and canners will meet next month to push for dumping actions against imports of canned New Zealand kahawai which they say is plundering the Australian market. Mr France said that either he or some other senior executive would attend the meeting to answer the accusations. “I can understand their concern at getting a smaller return but it is not caused by Sealord dumping canned fish there. We would not do that to Australians,” he said. . “The problem reflects a glut of kahawai caught in

Australia. That is not our fault. Our export philosophy is to aim for the top end of the market, but there is a problem in Australia where we sell to two companies, one of which takes a lower mark-up when it retails the product. “We try to get a maximum return. We have to,” he said.

“Our fuel costs are higher than the West Australians’. We have the most expensive water in the world in which to export over—the Tasman—and the cost of cans is almost crippling. “We have all these problems thousands of kilometres from a market and they say we are dumping,” said Mr France.

Australian Federal statistics show that imports of

canned kahawai in the seven months to January 31, 1983, were 275 tonnes. In the seven months to January 31, this year, the figure had slumped to 153 tonnes.

“Despite that dramatic decline in only 12 months they say we are dumping the product,” said Mr France.

He said that the basic problem was huge catches of kahawai in West Australia and a declining market as consumers increased their preference for tuna and real salmon (some kahawai is marketed as a form of salmon).

Any inference that Sealord was using a canning recipe somehow gained improperly was “rubbish,” he said.