Like many Australians I'm concerned at the direction our country is being led, it seems that Australian governments have given up our sovereignty to global free trade with decisions affecting our future now being made in foreign boardrooms not by Australian governments or companies. Groups like Stop Foreign Ownership in Australia is working hard to raise awareness of this issue and encouraging Australians to support Australian owned businesses. The Issue of Foreign Ownership and Food Security has been brought into focus in a speech by the Member for Wills, Kelvin Thompson. The mining boom being driven by the 80% foreign owned mining industry is doing great damage to Australian owned businesses in tourism and agriculture. You can help by holidaying in Australia, suporting Australian owned businesses and Australian jobs
As a small organic farmer I perhaps have a different perspective to many Australians, but I believe that agritourism has a place to play in our future because without a safe secure food supply we have no future. My company operates tourist radio stations in the South West of WA which promotes small tourism related businesses all over WA. Like most small business my company has been ignored by the WA tourism bureaucracy so I was delighted to be invited to talk on Agritourism at the New Rural Industries Australia Conference in Ballarat in April 2012. My presentation was titled, Agritourism and the Internet, remaking the connection between farmers and eaters .
Following this I was interviewed by Olivia Garnett from ABC Rural South West, part of that interview was used on the Country Hour on 30 May, the story was titled Internet connects farmers and eaters . Another part of the interview, titled, Will the time of the small producer return, comparing organic and conventional farming and discussing the threat of Australia's retail duopoly to food security was aired on 8 June, click on the arrow to listen .
