Funding to build fresh produce suppliers’ understanding of the Food and Grocery Code

You can apply if you:

• have an Australian business number (ABN) or Indigenous Corporation Number (ICN)
• are registered for the Goods and Services Tax (GST)
• have an account with an Australian financial institution
• can provide evidence that you are a national fresh produce industry association that represents one or more of the following fresh food supplier categories subject to the Code, specifically:
  • fresh fruit
  • fresh vegetables
  • fresh mushrooms
• can provide evidence that your industry association: 
  • represents at least 100 individual members, or;
  • consists of at least 6 member businesses, or;
  • is made up of at least 10 organisations/companies
• can demonstrate your capability to deliver training services:
  • nationally (including rural and regional and metropolitan areas of Australia)
  • to fresh fruit, vegetable and mushroom suppliers
  • to both your membership base as well as other fresh produce suppliers outside your membership base.

and are one of the following entities:

• an entity incorporated in Australia (including incorporated not for profit organisations, registered charities, co-operatives and companies limited by guarantee)
• an incorporated trustee on behalf of a trust 
• an incorporated association.
  
   

You can’t apply if you are:

• any organisation not included in section 4.1 of the grant opportunity guidelines
• an organisation, or your project partner is an organisation, included on the National Redress Scheme’s list of Institutions that have not joined or signified their intent to join the Scheme
• an employer of 100 or more employees that has not complied with the Workplace Gender Equality Act (2012)
• a Registered Training Organisation (unless your organisation is also an industry association that primarily represents fresh produce suppliers)
• an individual
• a partnership
• an unincorporated association
• a trust (however, an incorporated trustee may apply on behalf of a trust)
• a Commonwealth, state, territory or local government body (including government business enterprises)
• a non-corporate Commonwealth entity.

Partner with other organisations

You can partner with one or more other organisations that also meet the eligibility criteria. But you must decide who the lead organisation is.

The lead organisation must fill out the application form.

If we give your group the grant, the lead organisation:

• signs the grant agreement
• is responsible for making sure your group follows the rules in the grant agreement.

We encourage you to thoroughly review the grant opportunity guidelines for further information on partnering with other organisations.

You must complete your project by 31 March 2028.

Your project must:

• be located in Australia
• develop, promote and provide free national training to fresh produce suppliers (such as eLearning modules or webinars, in-person training such as regional roadshows, or a mix of approaches)
• be targeted to the needs of fresh produce suppliers covered by the Code (specifically smaller suppliers with annual revenue below $10 million or with fewer than 100 employees) and located in rural, regional and metropolitan areas of Australia
• be aimed at improving fresh produce suppliers’ understanding of their rights under the Code to increase their capacity to negotiate contracts with large grocery businesses
• demonstrate the ability to accommodate varying levels of digital and business skills and be accessible for First Nations and Culturally and Linguistically Diverse fresh produce suppliers
• include activities as described in section 5.1 of the grant opportunity guidelines.
  
   

You can apply for a grant between $500,000 and $2,000,000.

You can use this grant funding for:

• labour costs for employees directly employed on core elements of the project
• labour on-costs of up to 30 per cent on direct labour cost to cover employer paid superannuation, payroll tax and workers compensation insurance
• contractor costs or expert advice
• domestic travel including reasonable cost of accommodation and transportation
• communication and promotional materials costs
• education and training materials for participants
• staff training that directly supports project outcomes and is directly related to the project activity
• financial auditing of project expenditure up to a maximum of 1 per cent of total eligible project expenditure
• ongoing upgrades, updates and maintenance of existing ICT systems and computing facilities that directly relate to the project
• advertising, recruitment and contract negotiation directly related to the design, development and delivery of training
• costs associated with the running of participant workshops such as catering and cleaning
• preparing any project reports and variation requests
• translation services to ensure project material accessibility.