Today is AgDay. A day for all Australians to stop and recognise the important role our primary industries play in producing food and fibre products that Australians use in everyday life, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA), Mr Ross Hampton said today.
A new survey conducted for AgDay by TEG Insights has found almost a quarter of young Australians aged 18 to 29 don’t care about how their food and fibre is grown.
“This trend is a major cause for concern for everyone across agriculture and primary industries in Australia, including forest industries,” Mr Hampton said.
“We need to ensure that Australians and more acutely young Australians understand and appreciate the importance of forest industries which provide jobs and economic activity and help fight climate change. All of us across our sectors need to do a better job of explaining to the community what we do and why,” Mr Hampton said.
“The AgDay theme this year is ‘Grow for Good’, which is all about highlighting progress in making the agriculture and primary industries sectors smarter and more sustainable.
“The great news is that Australia’s forest industries are already the most renewable and sustainable industries in the nation. By buying Australian grown and manufactured timber and paper products, consumers can be confident that they are supporting sustainable jobs while helping the environment. It’s a win win situation.
“I congratulate the National Farmers Federation (NFF) and their partners on organising another terrific AgDay to promote the engine rooms of Australia, our primary industries,” Mr Hampton concluded.