Australia's first raw sugar shipment to the United Kingdom in 50 years commenced on Monday, (July 10), opening a crucial market for Queensland's sugar industry. Under the recently implemented Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (A-UKFTA), tariff-free raw sugar exports to the UK have resumed, gradually increasing until tariffs are fully eliminated in 2031.
Industry-owned sugar marketer, Queensland Sugar Limited (QSL), made the first Australian raw sugar sale under the agreement. The milestone shipment, produced in the Burdekin region, will be sent to Tate & Lyle Sugars' refinery on the Thames in London.
QSL Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Greg Beashel said the sale was underpinned by a united industry approach, with other Australian quota holders to the UK making their new UK quota allocation available to QSL for the milestone shipment which reinvigorates a market effectively lost when the UK joined the European Economic Community (EEC) common market back in 1973.
“Up until that point nearly a third of Australia’s sugar exports had gone to Britain, but this came to an end when the European Union (EU) restricted our market access through relatively high tariffs, and we pivoted towards alternative markets in Asia and North America,” Mr Beashel said.
“We’re optimistic that this sale is the first step towards reopening what is essentially a whole new market for Australian sugar producers, with Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) data showing the first full tariff-free quota year in 2024 could see the value of Australian raw sugar exports to the UK reach $74 million, up from effectively nothing during the past five years.”
The shipment is scheduled to arrive at Tate & Lyle Sugars’ Thames refinery in London on 10 September.
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