Australian beef and sheep meat exports are being hamstrung by port industrial action, putting at risk almost $300 million in red meat business a week.
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Exporters have joined farmers and business groups in demanding the government steps in.
Container terminals in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and Fremantle have been thrown into disarray as Dubai-based shipping company DP World, one of Australia's largest stevedores, and its staff, continue to go head-to-head over pay and work conditions.
Loading and unloading of tens of thousands of containers has been delayed and across the board it has been estimated the protected industrial action has cost the economy tens of millions of dollars a week.
Industrial Relations Minister Tony Burke has agreed to meet with the stevedore.
The Australian Meat Industry Council said Australia was a leading supplier of high-quality red meat to the global market and in financial year 2023 exported $15 billion of beef, lamb and goat meat to more than 100 markets.
"Export revenue underpins the employment of hundreds of thousands of people across the red meat supply chain and is the economic lifeblood of Australia's rural farming communities," an AMIC spokesperson said.
"The recent port industrial action has severely disrupted the ability to trade perishable goods, particularly meat.
"The inability to get containers moving through ports and the lack of access to shipping slots has hamstrung Australian meat exporters, added unnecessary costs and risks eroding our reputation as a reliable supplier of food to customers around the world."
The industrial actions are not the sole concern for exporters with port access charges set to rise despite an ACCC report showing a 25 per cent leap in stevedoring revenues for 2022-23 and a 15-year average operating profit margin of 17.9pc.
The ACCC's Container Stevedoring Monitoring Report 2022-23, according to GrainGrowers, highlighted the system was not working in the interests of Australian grain growers or Australian export industries.
GrainGrowers acting general manager policy and advocacy, Sean Cole, said the report was a reminder of the need for port reform.
"DP World issued a notice of intention to increase landside fees at each of its terminals from February 1, rising by 52.52pc in Melbourne, 38.80pc in Sydney and 37.50pc in Brisbane," he said.
"These charges are significant and plainly illustrate that the current regulation is not effectively constraining container ports from exercising undue market power. Further analysis is required of the stevedores' high profit margins of recent years."
A DP World spokesperson said the increase in port access fees was a direct result of the continuous investment in infrastructure and operations by DP World.
"Such investments are not only about improving the efficiency and capacity of our operations but also ensuring the safety and sustainability of our ports," the spokesperson said. "This is in line with the global trend of increasing operational expenses in the maritime industry. The fees also reflect the increased cost of ensuring compliance with stricter environmental and security regulations."
DP World said it understood the concerns of GrainGrowers, however, said it's important to clarify that the increase in stevedoring revenues is not only due to higher fees but also due to a higher volume of container movements.
