Seafood CRC: seafood trade expert panel (SafeFish)

Project number: 2009-752.10

Project Status:

Completed

Budget expenditure: $432,268.53

Principal Investigator: Alison Turnbull

Organisation: SARDI Food Safety and Innovation

Project start/end date: 28 Feb 2010 - 29 Feb 2012

Contact:

FRDC

Need

The members of the SAF (industry and government) have recognized the need to provide coordinated, cohesive and robust technical advice to support Australian negotiators and delegations dealing with trade and market access issues. While this expertise is variously available from different sources a more cohesive and collaborative approach will help:

a) ensure that the most appropriate technical expertise is available to support Australian trade negotiations relating to seafood
b) coordinate robust technical advice for input to international trade fora such as Codex and bilateral and multilateral trade agreement discussions
c) deliver a multi disciplinary approach to often very complex trade issues and ensure that Seafood CRC participant business operations and practices are considered in developing Australia’s negotiating positions
d) foster open communication between Australia’s technical trade experts and assist early detection of issues
e) provide a forum for debate and discussion about technical trade issues and their impact on the CRC participant businesses
f) create an international technical trade network and enable Australia’s experts to identify and act on opportunities for national and international collaboration
g) facilitate professional development of existing and new people with technical trade expertise.

Objectives

1. Establish the ‘Seafood Trade Expert Panel’ by June 2010 and develop at least 2 position papers or technical reviews each year for input into the resolution of high priority current technical barriers to trade (see methods section 1 for details of the STEP)

2. Provide technical guidance and support to Australia’s delegations to at least 2 Codex meetings per year that potentially impact on Seafood CRC participant businesses.

Final report

ISBN: 978-1-925983-40-1

Author: Alison Turnbull and Natalie Dowsett

Final Report • 2015-04-01 • 398.71 KB

2009-752.10-DLD.pdf

Summary

SafeFish originated from the recognition by the members of the former Seafood Access Forum (SAF) (industry and government) of the need to provide coordinated, cohesive and robust technical advice to support Australian negotiators and delegations dealing with trade and market access issues related to food safety. While this expertise was variously available from different sources a more cohesive collaborative approach was required to bring together all relevant stakeholders (industry, scientists, government, and regulators) more collectively. This was the origin of the partnership approach known originally as the Seafood Trade Expert Panel which was then renamed SafeFish in 2011. This project was responsible for ensuring the most appropriate technical expertise was available to support Australian trade negotiations relating to seafood and to coordinate robust technical advice for input to international trade fora such as Codex and bilateral and multilateral trade agreement discussions.

SafeFish has been very successful in delivering a multi-disciplinary approach to often very complex trade issues which has ensured that Seafood CRC participant business operations and practices were considered in developing Australia’s negotiating positions

Project products

Report • 2015-03-01 • 1.89 MB

2009-752.10-Business model review report.pdf

Summary

SafeFish is assessing its strategic and operational strategies and structures in response to two needs: to ensure SafeFish has a long term future beyond funding cycles, and to fulfil a condition of the SafeFish funding agreement.

This report is submitted to the recently appointed independent Chair of SafeFish, Dr Anne Astin, and her SafeFish Partnership Group colleagues. The report responds to a Terms of Reference (see Appendix 1) developed by SafeFish to identify a preferred Business Model that reflects stakeholder investment needs, positions the partnership to create value for stakeholders, and enables its longevity.

This report provides independent interim advice regarding the Partnership Group’s preferred operational model and structures over the next 3 years. This advice is based on strategic discussions with stakeholders, known work programs, and priorities currently defined. A more comprehensive and longer term strategic discussion is now required to identify and strategically focus on what seafood problems SafeFish is to solve. This requires stakeholders and the FRDC to jointly consider and agree the integrated risk management and strategic investment platform that is essential to guide SafeFish and its work program over the next 5-10 years.