Industry responds to Budget 2025

Following the release of the federal Budget on Tuesday night (26 March), here’s how Australia’s food and grocery manufacturers’ body responded.

The Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) said it welcomed the government’s commitment to easing financial pressure on households. However, it said, lasting relief for Australians depends on a strong, viable domestic manufacturing sector that can keep shelves reliably stocked with affordable products.

The AFGC is encouraging a ‘food first’ approach to national policy, highlighting that cost-of-living support works best when paired with a robust cost-of-doing-business agenda. For food and grocery manufacturing, it noted this would include four key points of action:

1. Government tax incentives to modernise processes in the industry through automation and digitisation
2. Investing in more resilient transport infrastructure to protect against natural disaster disruptions
3. Ensuring access to stable, affordable energy for manufacturers
4. Addressing workforce shortages, particularly in regional and rural areas

The AFGC said it looks forward to continued collaboration with government on delivering both cost-of-living relief and long-term industry resilience.

Image credit: iStock.com/Eoneren