Call for independent GRDC review

Grains industry stakeholders have called for an independent review of the Grains Research and Development Corporation, following the release of the independent review findings of the horticulture levy system.
The Horticulture Australia Ltd review was run by independent consultants ACIL Allen and overseen by an independent steering committee.
Pastoralists and Graziers Association Western Grain Growers chairman John Snooke has called for a similar review with GRDC.
Mr Snooke commended the horticulture industry for having the courage to instigate an independent audit of its levy organisation, and called on GRDC to do the same for Australian grain growers.
He said while the HAL review findings appeared to be quite damning in regard to the value the levy payer was receiving, it was nevertheless an important process for growers in that industry.
"We feel that those findings are too similar to the concerns that we have with the GRDC and we would like GRDC to undertake or commission an independent audit of its performance and of its financials," Mr Snooke said.
"The concern is that GRDC has a guaranteed income stream that is growing, they have massive reserves, yet productivity in the grains sector has flatlined," he said.
Mr Snooke said given the GRDC had formed back in 1988, it was time to now review its value to the Australian grains industry.
"GRDC has not had this type of thorough investigation before and we don't think it's unreasonable to ask for that," Mr Snooke said.
"Once we have an informed position about the GRDC, then we should be having a discussion about the future," he said.
Mr Snooke reiterated the PGA call for the levy to be voluntary.
But WAFarmers Grains Section president Kim Simpson said any external review would be a waste of grower funds, and any changes to the organisation needed to be made "from within".
The levy needed to remain mandatory in order to fund long-term research projects that had widespread benefits, he said.
"If growers have a problem with the way it's being used, then they owe it to themselves to make contact with the board and their growers representatives and do something about it," he said.
"I agree that there is room for improvement, but I don't think the answer is to have a voluntary levy instead of the mandatory system.
"What we need to consider is how much less profitable growers would have been if GRDC wasn't around."
Mr Simpson said a voluntary levy would create significant long-term industry-wide problems.
"What do you have then? You get back to the point where you start having different States reproducing the same results," Mr Simpson said.
"When you divide yourself like that, you lose any sort of market power and are poorer for it.
"We need to use some collective power."
Mr Snooke said the GRDC governance review, undertaken by consultancy Marsden Jacob and headed by Grain Producers Australia board member and former GRDC Chairman Terry Enright, was nothing more than "box ticking".
"This current review is purely about structure and governance - essentially they are looking at rolling the GRDC into an industry-owned corporation," he said.
"But this will make them less accountable and it will essentially give them a licence to go and do exactly what they wish with our levy money.
"It puts more power in the hands of the administration, and we, as growers, continually get further away from the decision makers."
GRDC chairman Richard Clark refuted the allegations that the current review on the GRDC’s structure and governance was not independent.
He said if the review did not demonstrate a clear benefit in moving to an industry owned corporation, then the organisation would not change its structure.
“This governance review is looking forward, and what the PGA and ICropAustralia are both asking for is a review looking backwards,” Mr Clark said.
He said industry groups had called for the governance review.
“All the grower groups got together and decided they wanted to do this. PGA pulled out of this process very early, they obviously didn’t want to be part of it,” Mr Clark said.
He said a GRDC survey of growers showed 80 per cent believed GRDC was doing a good, or very good job.
“The majority of the industry is quite comfortable with what we have achieved in the past and of our future direction. I’m proud of GRDCs achievements,” Mr Clark said.