Just over half of Australia’s woolgrowers have voted in favour to pay a 1.5 per cent levy for the next three years instead of the peak wool body’s recommended 2pc.
Subscribe now for unlimited access to all our agricultural news
across the nation
or signup to continue reading
Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) today announced the results after a special WoolPoll panel meeting was reconvened when the vote between option 1.5pc levy and the 2pc levy was too close, with the counting of preferences needed to determine the final outcome.
The count was overseen by Link Market Services and endorsed by the WoolPoll panel and the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources.
Of the 13,506 votes received, following the allocation of three rounds of preferences, 52.82pc voted in favour of a 1.5 per cent wool levy.
In second preference was the 2pc option with 47.18pc
On a first preference vote, 88.28pc of woolgrowers had voted for a levy option of either 1.5pc or 2pc.
AWI CEO Stuart McCullough said the company accepts that woolgrowers believe a 1.5 per cent levy is the appropriate levy rate to be paying at this time on their wool sales.
He said they had decided to announce the result of WoolPoll 2018 as soon as they had the outcome in preference to waiting to the annual general meeting next Friday, November 23.
“AWI believed it was important woolgrowers were informed as soon as the results were finalised. We had the results, so we felt there was no reason to hold them back,” Mr McCullough said.
He said AWI would adjust its operations to match available funding as part of the next three-year strategic plan, which commences in 2019-20.
“There is no doubt with volume down, value down and the levy down, that will impact revenue - mathematically it just has to,” Mr McCullough said.
“What it means for AWI is we just have to ‘cut the cloth’. We have to accept the woolgrowers voted for this.
“The very structure of this was put into place by a couple of our directors many years ago, and we have defended the right of woolgrowers to vote on the amount of money they pay us for the best part of 18 years.
“We respect that, we have heard the vote now we just have to make sure the operations of this business and the project spend are done in a way that is lean and prudent and we extract the most out of that money that is provided to us in any one year.”
He said on top of the levy the company can draw down on their reserves but that is yet to be decided what level of draw down that is.
Mr McCullough said he sees no reason for the current split of levy allocation to change from 60pc marketing, 40pc R and D.
“We will endeavour to ensure no loss of momentum in the marketing of wool in Australia and overseas and would continue its targeted investment across sheep health and welfare, reproduction, vertebrate pests, genetics, fibre advocacy, farm automation and software development,” he said.
He said woolgrowers across the country are facing challenging conditions at present.
“As woolgrowers adjust to the seasonal conditions, so will AWI adapt to the democratic choice of our levy-payers,” he said.
WoolProducers Australia President Richard Halliday said growers have had their say for the next three years and they have determined that 1.5pc is appropriate.
“WoolProducers strongly believed that 1.5pc would provide ample money for AWI to conduct their current business as well as invest in relevant new areas,” Mr Halliday said.
“The last three financial years has seen expenditure by AWI of between $70 and $88M per year and the industry got to a good place with that level of investment.”
He said WoolProducers’ decision to advocate a lower levy was not a protest decision or linked to governance concerns.
“It is important to note that whilst we continue to have concerns around the governance of AWI and their response to many of the recommendations in Review of Performance, these issues were never a factor in our decision to support 1.5pc,” Mr Halliday said.
“WoolProducers believes that now that growers have made their decision and the levy has been set, AWI’s focus must continue to be implementation of the review recommendations.
“The review recommendations were made independently to improve the governance and operations of AWI, so they must now get on with implementing them in the quickest way possible.”
He said WoolPoll should no longer be considered to be a distraction so AWI must forge ahead to modernise the organisation in the interests of all woolgrowers.
AWI Chair Colette Garnsey said she was encouraged that the vast majority of woolgrowers see the value in AWI’s work.
She assured woolgrowers that the company is committed to building resilience into research, development and marketing investments.
