Poppies: Liberals support, Labor sold out

Tasmania is the world’s largest alkaloid poppy producer and that’s despite Labor’s best efforts.

I utterly reject claims from Labor today regarding Tasmania’s poppy industry and am gobsmacked by their hypocrisy and negativity.

In 2013, Labor approved an application to import 2,000 tonnes of Turkish poppy straw, undermining the Tasmanian industry and destroying confidence.

Simply, Labor sold out Tasmanian poppy growers.

The Tasmanian Liberals never supported the Turkish imports. We back our industry.

We will never risk compromising the poppy industry or its reputation, but Labor’s own actions demonstrated that they would.

This season, the International Narcotic Control Board confirmed there was an oversupply of opiate based medication, and reduced the global production allocations.

However, Tasmania remains the world’s largest producer of licit narcotic raw material and supplies half of the world’s demand, making us a vitally significant supplier to the global pharmaceutical market.

Here in Tasmania, there is a Government that supports the agriculture sector.

Just yesterday I announced reforms to make it easier for farmers to boost productivity by managing wallabies and possums.

We have also made it easier to build farm dams and to grow industrial hemp. We are also investing in irrigation, biosecurity, research and development, farm safety and agricultural skills.

We are a Government that is committed to growing our competitive strengths, like agriculture and our poppy industry.
Jeremy Rockliff, Minister for Primary Industries and Water