Wednesday, 27 August 2025

Environment and Planning Committee

Inquiry into Securing the Victorian Food Supply

Juliana ADDISON (Wendouree) (10:22): I am delighted to follow the member for Warrandyte, a proud member – former member, sadly – of the Legislative Assembly Environment and Planning Committee, but a key member when we did our inquiry into securing the Victorian food supply. I am very pleased to say that what we undertook was a major investigation into how Victoria can safeguard its food systems amid rapid population growth and urban expansion. The reason I am talking about this committee report today is because the government’s response to our committee findings was tabled in this place on 31 July, just two sitting weeks ago. I am really pleased, as chair of the Legislative Assembly Environment and Planning Committee, to talk through what we recommended and how the government has responded.

Also, as always, I want to pay my great thanks to the member for Morwell, the member for Ripon, the member for Bass, the member for Monbulk, the member for Croydon and of course the member for Warrandyte, because we really work together so well and we enjoy each other’s company. As a result of this we did some really great work, including making 29 findings and 33 recommendations aimed at ensuring long-term access to healthy locally grown food for all Victorians, something that is important to every single person in this place.

I would also like to thank Samantha Leahy – I see that she is in the house – our researcher, who did the most outstanding job. We were so lucky to work with you, Sam, and for the work that you have done more recently on our regional housing inquiry we are indebted to you. I also thank Igor Dosen, who has moved on to the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee – we miss you, Igor; we hope everyone is treating you well in PAEC, but you did a great job with this – as well as Helen Ross-Soden and Imogen Bacon.

The key finding of our committee report was that urban sprawl is impacting farmland, especially near major cities and regional towns. This is very much an issue for my electorate when we see the growth of suburbs like Alfredton and Winter Valley. When I was a kid growing up in Ballarat, kids used to live on farms, and when they would come to my primary school they would walk across them. It is all housing estates now, so we know that that is impacting. We know that Victoria’s population is projected to exceed 10 million by the 2050s, increasing demand for food and fresh produce, and that food insecurity is rising, particularly in peri-urban and regional communities. I know, like many people in this place, just what a big issue this is for far too many people in our electorates. I want to give a shout-out to all our food services, particularly Foodbank. This is why we are doing our breakfasts at schools, and this is why we are doing our lunches at schools – because we know that food insecurity is a real issue to many families across Victoria.

We also know that climate change and water scarcity are emerging threats to food production as well as local food manufacturing. We recognise the great workers, particularly the workers in my former union, the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union, for the critical role they play in food supply, and I give a shout-out to them.

We had a number of major recommendations, including the importance of protecting agricultural land from urban encroachment, developing a statewide food security strategy with clear targets and investment plans, support for peri-urban farming, improving access to locally grown food, investing in climate-resilient farm practices, strengthening local food manufacturing, enhancing data collection and promoting education and awareness. I am very pleased to talk to this house about the Victorian government, the Allan Labor government, supporting 29 of the committee’s recommendations either in full, in principle or in part, and we have already advanced several programs and initiatives since the report was tabled in this place back in November 2024.

I would really like to thank the work of the ministerial offices and the great workforces across departments in providing the response to the Legislative Assembly. What we have been doing as a government is continuing to provide expert advice and access to land data. We have been progressing planning for Melbourne’s green wedges action plan 2024. We have been supporting organisations to deliver pop-up food relief markets across metropolitan Melbourne. We have been involved in grant programs, including the agricultural college modernisation program, and we have also done $5.5 million for the Secondary Schools Agriculture Fund. There is so much to talk about. I commend the report.