Heinz continues to stonewall efforts by the Girgarre community and their supporters to acquire the tomato processing plant which the company closed last year, citing the cost pressures of globalisation.
Les Cameron, Chairperson of the Goulburn Food Valley Action Committee, today issued a media statement and a memo to Judith Swales, Managing Director of Heinz Australia, explaining why, in the Committee’s view, the company should sell its former tomato processing plant in Girgarre, Victoria, to the newly-formed community-grower-worker co-operative.
Mr Cameron explained at length why the offered purchase price of $750,000, which the company has rejected as ‘inadequate’, is more than fair in the circumstances.These include the generous tax concessions and produce discounts made available to the company over more than two decades by Australian taxpayers and local tomato growers.
The vision of the embryonic Food Co-operative is to act as a community-owned Food Hub, integrating not just state-of-the-art processing functions, but also acting as a centre of education and training. Aiming to secure the direct financial backing of 1 million Australians via a $50 membership contribution, the Co-operative wants to serve as a source of inspiration, and support the establishment of similar initiatives around the country.
Food Sovereignty in action!
Read the media release and the memo by clicking on the links below:
