The army of backpackers who normally arrive in spring and summer for the harvest is currently locked out of Victoria.
The fruit industry is waiting on decisive information and action from state and federal governments, which would make a way for the international labour force to work here.
Victorian Nationals Leader Peter Walsh said the labour problem was an "orphan" that no-one wanted to adopt. He is concerned there is no strategic plan to deal with the looming shortage.
Last Friday he suggested Victoria could follow the Northern Territory's example of making quarantine accommodation available for overseas workers who were flown in. He suggested international flights could use a city like Mildura which has a large airstrip, thus bypassing Tullamarine and Melbourne.
There would normally be about 200,000 backpackers in Australia and there are currently only 16,000, of which about 1500 are leaving every week, Australian Fresh Produce Alliance chief executive Michael Rogers said in a web conference organised by the Rural Press Club.
The flow of travellers has also been stymied by state border closures and the Melbourne lockdown.
Agriculture Victoria acting chief executive Matt Lowe said there were government accommodation and relocation subsidies available for unemployed people prepared to work in harvesting.
He said there was a huge opportunity for people out of work due to the COVID-19 impact.
He said 55,000 people had registered for the Working For Victoria platform. If 10 per cent of those people go into agricultural work there was a huge opportunity.
Goulburn Valley grower Peter Hall said the industry was facing extraordinary circumstances.
He was pessimistic about getting unemployed urban Australians, unused to working in 30-degree heat and starting at 6 am, filling the vacancies.
“It is suitable for backpackers who are focused on earning money and extending their visa stay and who are used to moving around, or the Pacific islanders who want to earn money in a short period of time.”
Mr Hall said he was not closing the door on people keen to work, but said there was some skill involved and the conditions might be different to what people were accustomed to.
Mr Walsh said he was cynical about getting large numbers of unemployed people to switch to harvest work, based on personal experience in organising casual labour.
Mr Rogers said the alliance was working on possible solutions with governments and monitoring how other countries were handling the problem.
“The critical challenge for us right now, is timing,” he said.
“We have been talking about this since March and the time in which we have to deliver changes is shortening and getting very difficult for growers.
“Right now we need urgency from governments.
“Victoria is understandably concerned about the virus, but it's now getting to the point where we are saying: we have to focus on the supply of workers as well as their health, because we are not going to have enough to get the crop off and get us all fed.”
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