The Australian Food Industry

1. The Australian Food Industry Sectors

2. Agri-food Chain Production and supply of food is known as the agri-food chain. The AFI consists of 4 sectors that rely heavily on one another: • Agriculture & Fisheries • Food Processing & Manufacture • Food Service & Catering • Food Retail

3. 1. Agriculture & Fisheries • Agriculture is the cultivation of land to produce food derived from plant and animal sources. • Fisheries involves the commercial catching of fish and other marine species

4. 1. Agriculture & Fisheries • Nearly 90% of the total value of Australian agricultural production comes from food. • Main cereal crops: wheat, oats, barley, rice, maize and sorghum. • Australia’s dairy industry ranks third in the world and is the largest processed-food industry in Australia. Majority of milk in Australia is exported in the form of: cheese, milk powder, butter, casein and whey powder.

5. 1. Agriculture & Fisheries • Meat industry is well established and a significant export item. Internationally Australia is the second largest exporter of beef. • Main exports: beef, lamb, pork, poultry, game and exotic meats. • At home chicken is the most popular meat among consumers followed by beef.

6. 1. Agriculture & Fisheries • Fisheries contribute to the agri-food chain through both commercial fishing for fish and aquatic species for human consumption and industrial fishing for fish destined for products such as fish oil, and fertiliser.

7. 1. Agriculture & Fisheries • Aquaculture is an area growing in popularity and involves cultivating and harvesting aquatic plants (such as seaweed and marine algae) or animals (such as clams, oysters and salmon).

8. 2. Food Processing & Manufacture • The processing of raw produce before it reaches the consumer.

9. 2. Food Processing & Manufacture • Most food produced in the agriculture and fisheries sector undergoes some form of processing before being sold to the consumer. • This includes “value adding” steps, such as, convenient packaging, or heating, cooling, grinding, milling and separating. • The value-adding sector is the largest sector of the agri-food chain.

10. 3. Food Service & Catering • The preparation and service of food to customers. Also known as the Hospitality Industry.

11. 3. Food Service & Catering • It involves all food items served to customers in eg: • School canteens • Restaurants • Takeaway food stores • Catered functions • Hospitals • Prisons • Airline flights etc

12. 4. Food Retail • Places in which raw or value added products can be purchased.

13. 4. Food Retail • Food retailers vary in size and dominance and include large, national food chains such as Woolworths and Coles and smaller stores such as corner shops, petrol stations butchers and bakers.

14. 4. Food Retail • Food retailers vary in size and dominance and include large, national food chains such as Woolworths and Coles and smaller stores such as corner shops, petrol stations butchers and bakers.

15. Activity • Read Case Study: ‘No Bananas for Nine Months’- Pages 147-148 Food Technology in Action 4th ed. • Answer questions 1-5.

16. Activity • Think of a food product and use a flow diagram to show how each sector contributed to the final product reaching the consumer.