Coffs Harbour banana growers are joining a national campaign to stop fresh bananas from the Philippines entering Australia, warning that imported produce could bring diseases that devastate local farms forever.
The federal Department of Agriculture is conducting an import risk assessment, with a technical team scheduled to visit the Philippines in late March 2026 to check farm and packing shed conditions. The review focuses on three key plant diseases – Moko, black Sigatoka, and banana freckle. Australia currently remains free of Moko and black Sigatoka, and has successfully contained banana freckle. Australia eradicated black Sigatoka in 2005, becoming the only country in the world to do so.
The Coffs Harbour and District Banana Growers Association has voiced strong opposition to the proposal. Leanne Gentle, a local grower who runs a banana farm in Bonville, said Australian farmers must meet strict standards and requirements for growing, producing and selling their bananas.
“The risk of disease from imports to our local farms would be catastrophic to our industry and the farming families,” Gentle said.
NSW Farmers member and Coffs Harbour grower Paul Shoker said the potential import review felt like a kick in the guts for the nation’s banana industry.
The Australian banana industry is worth $1.3 billion, supports more than 500 growers, and employs around 18,000 workers across the country. Chair of the Australian Banana Growers’ Council Leon Collins said allowing banana imports from the Philippines would put the entire local industry at risk.
Chair of the Banana Imports Committee, Paul Inderbitzin from Far North Queensland, said Moko and black Sigatoka were just the starting point of the threat.
“When you add threats like blood disease, banana skipper butterfly and banana bract mosaic virus, the risk profile changes significantly,” Inderbitzin said.
“For growers, the bottom line is simple: once a serious disease is here, there’s no going back.”
The Banana Imports Committee has welcomed the decision to include both a banana technical expert and a tropical plant pathologist in the government delegation. However, the committee remains concerned the visit may only show the best farms in the Philippines.
“We know the technical team will be shown the best of the best. The question is whether those same standards can be guaranteed across every farm that may seek to export to Australia,” Inderbitzin said.
The Banana Imports Fighting Fund reopened for contributions on 1 January 2026, with growers contributing half a cent per kilogram to fund the industry’s biosecurity campaign.
A draft report from the federal assessment is expected to be released for public consultation by late 2026 or early 2027.
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