Comments by the Prime Minister on the importance of agriculture to any EU-Australia free trade deal have earned industry praise.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is in Italy this week for ceremonies to mark the start of Pope Leo XIV’s Papacy and he is also meeting with EU President Ursula von der Leyen.
A free trade deal has been mooted before and has been given greater urgency since the US under Donald Trump announced a new tariff regime at the start of April.
Agriculture has previously been a sticking point, however, with the EU reluctant to grant the access wanted by Australian farmers as it seeks to guarantee its own food supplies.
In this context, Mr Albanese was quoted by Reuters as warning not to expect “big announcements”.
“What we will be able to do is to renew that liaison at a leader level between myself and Ms von der Leyen," Mr Albanese said.
Industry body the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) welcomed talks between Mr Albanese and Ms von der Leyen but stressed the importance of improved agricultural market access.
NFF president David Jochinke said it was “excellent to see the Prime Minister state clearly that a deal will not be struck at just any price”.
“In the last attempt to negotiate a free trade agreement [in 2018], the offer from the Europeans was simply not good enough and the Australian government demonstrated exceptional and principled leadership not agreeing to the terms in front of them,” Mr Jochinke said.
“The deal on offer from the European Union simply wasn’t good enough; limited market access and too many strings attached.”
Mr Jochinke said the central issues remain the same for Australian producers.
“This isn’t just any trade deal, it’ll shape trade between Australia and Europe for decades,” he said.
“That’s why it must be fair and balanced, with real gains for Australian agriculture at its core.”
Mr Jochinke said current global uncertainty underscored the need for the Australian Government to maintain its principled support for genuine free and open trade.
“Protectionism, no matter how it’s dressed up, only slows us all down and does real harm to Australian farmers,” he said.
“It’s time for the EU to walk the talk and bring forward a better offer than the one we saw in 2023.”
Mr Jochinke said “a solid free trade agreement” with Australia would give the EU a chance to show was serious about global trade leadership.
“There’s a real opportunity here for both sides to strike a deal that works,” he said.
According to the Delegation of the European Union to Australia, the EU is Australia's third-largest trading partner.