Archive, Industry News

Air freight relief scheme extended again

An emergency relief initiative introduced to help maintain Australia’s air freight routes during the COVID-19 pandemic has been extended again.

The International Freight Assistance Mechanism (IFAM), first introduced after the COVID-19 pandemic hit last year, was due to expire on September 30 but has now been extended again to mid-2022.

The cost to the Federal Government for the extension is $260.9 million, taking the overall total spent past $1 billion.

IFAM was designed to enable air freight of imported and exported goods for Australian businesses after commercial flights decreased due to the pandemic and associated border closures.

The Federal Government says IFAM has already supported more than 13,000 flights, 35,000 direct jobs and a further 120,000 indirect jobs which are reliant on air freight.

Trade Minister Dan Tehan says IFAM has ensured Australian producers have “maintained their reputation as high-quality, reliable suppliers.”

“Australia is a trading nation and trade creates jobs, drives innovation and underpins our economic growth,” he says.

“The program has been critical to ensuring the flow of vital imports such as medical supplies and other essential items as Australia continues its economic recovery.”

Agriculture Minister David Littleproud says it is important to keep IFAM running to ensure farmers are able to export their goods.

“We’re backing our farmers by making sure they can continue to get more of their high-quality product into overseas markets,” he says.

“Keeping our farmers connected with their established international customers helps keep their operations going and maintains their reputation as a reliable supplier of top-quality product.”

When the previous extension was announced in March, National Farmers Federation CEO Tony Mahar said it had been a necessary measure to help with supply chain challenges for the agriculture sector.

“The IFAM program and its extension is nothing short of a critical life-line for agricultural commodities that are heavily reliant on international air freight to get to market,” he said.

“Sectors such as the seafood industry, high value horticulture, and chilled meat are primarily reliant on air freight, and the extension of the IFAM program gives these industries some breathing space to find alternate supply chains in the medium term.”

Send this to a friend