The agriculture sector of Australia, particularly the rice producers and exporters, is now beginning to harvest the fruit of their World Trade Organization (WTO) trade accord. For nearly half a decade of waiting and exerting effort through the WTO, Australian exporters can now annually ship and sell over 18,000 tons of rice products to Taiwan market. The WTO agreement assigns Australian farmers with a certain maximum product allocation (quota) in each country and an opportunity to enter the market for a long period of time.   

In a statement, the Federal Government said that the new allocation or quota system will induce a stronger stability for the agriculture industry of Australia. The past international quota system, which Taiwan officers strictly imposed to exporters, will be superseded by the recent quota system specifying the allocation or limitation in every country.

There are four countries included in the WTO accord with quota system that is country-specific. These are Australia, Egypt, Thailand, and the United States. Australian farmers and exporters are still committed in competing under and dealing with the international quota system.

According to Minister Warren Truss of Australian Trade Ministry, the recent quota system, which will allow 18,634 metric tons of rice to be shipped by exporters, is a good news for both the Australian farmers and the countries where the agriculture sector has been devastated by calamities and restrictions. He also said that the rice exportation proves the strength of the farmers to attain significant market entry result. 

The Australian exporters can now bring rice to markets of different nations with the biggest demand under this new system of quota. These countries are mostly in Asia, particularly Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines. The Australian government is now communicating with agriculture industries and rice producers concerning the date of the initial shipments.

Rice firms and exporters in Australia have expressed their compliments on the deal's result, which was attained notwithstanding the vehement disapproval of other nations where rice producers are key economic players.

A rice firm official said that the location of Taiwan and the sublime quality of the rice goods are few of the advantages of the exporters. Moreover, these benefits make the Australian products competitive in the global market. He even said that the new system of allocation will provide privileges for a greater development in the years to come. More so, the yearly exporters' profit from the new policy will help the families and communities in the New South Wales and Riverina area. As a fitting result, economic growth is promoted as the people, whose main source of living is cultivating land for rice, gain benefits from the quota system and trade accord.