Only a member of the socialist Left could suggest ‘fixing the dollar temporarily’. China holds the Yuan down artificially to aid exports, but look at the result – sloppy manufacturing, unsafe food products. The Left-wing PM Paul Keating floated the dollar, rightly; so where what does that say about Tristan Ewins.

SPC’s inefficiency has nothing to do with the ‘high’ dollar. They have the backing of a huge parent company – one of that foreign lot that try to suck money out of Australian tax payers just like General Motors and Holden.

The Government has done the correct – the only sensible thing – by refusing to put OUR money into an inefficient, greedy enterprise. All Australian taxpayers can do, if they care about the problem, is BUY AUSTRALIAN. But, of course, they don’t always wish to do that because, in general, Australian products carry higher prices than imports.

So, it would be down right stupid to prop up a company that will continue to charge more than people are prepared to pay!

As for SPC workers being on “below” average wages: piffle! That comment merely shows a socialist's complete lack of understanding about ‘averages’ to add to his, and other Left-wingers’ ignorance of business and money matters – the reason why Australia was brought to its knees by Labor with its handouts to all and sundry from the taxpayer purse.

A few brief points:

a) How do you make a connection between a fixed exchange rate and product quality?

b) Has it occurred to you that a co-operative could forsake dividends, and that combined with a flatter management structure could make SPC-Ardmona MORE competitive?

c) What about dumping?

d) What about food security, and a growing population (and hence a growing market) both locally and globally?

The author says...A nation which cannot feed itself is dependent upon other nations for this most basic of needs. And as Australia's population grows domestic demand will grow – providing new opportunities

And there in lies the problem, our population is too small for a multi national like CCA to survive on in-house sales.

....All this is better than letting strategic industries 'wither and die' without any plan for the future.

Ar yes, but just what is their plans for the future. Hopefully not just sitting back and relying on a never ending hand out, especially when profits leave our shores.

....SPC workers receive in the vicinity of $50,000 a year

Yes well, we all know what a furphy the average wage is, as it considers all wages when deciding on a figure, which is just that, a figure.

What needs to be examined is the type of work performed, pitted against industry award rates fir such work, then one can determine if they are under paid or over paid as it is pointless gauging them against the average wage as this figure is irrelevant.

While I am not opposed to government assistance, there needs to be some very strict guidelines.

1. The business must be able to demonstrate a medium to long term return to profit and, that those profits can't be simply taken off shore.

2. There also needs to be provision that in the event that OS companies pull the pin, that the asset is passed on to the Australian government, at nil cost, so at least they have the option of taking on the business with a view towards providing employment for locals simply because the multi national decided the profits were too low.

Remembering of cause that unlike a business, governments have the luxury of only have to run on a cost recovery basis, at worst.

Failure to do at lease these is just a continuation of the labor mentality of a tax payer funded gravy train.

I don't have a problem with the idea that SPC-Ardmona be run as a cooperative.

I do believe however that the government has no part to play in such an endeavour - the business either survives and thrives on its own merits, or it doesn't.

The reason (I suspect) that CCA is showing no interest in supporting its modernization plans is that they do not provide a path to long-term profitability. Ergo, any nationalization or partial nationalization will have to provide financial support on an ongoing basis.

Which is the flaw in Mr Ewins argument: nobody seems to believe that the industry can survive without being a drain on someone's purse, either CCA's or ours.

I prefer it not to be ours.

If the large, profitable company CCA is not prepared to further invest in one of it's own businesses why should the tax payers do it?
If the unions are so concerned let them raise the money and take a stake in the business.

Further, SPC's demise started well before the dollar started to soar.

The problem is more one of demand. I very, very, rarely buy canned fruit. Tomatoes, yes, but that is about all. When I was a child we often had canned fruit as desert. Fresh fruit was very seasonal and not always available at a reasonable price. Times have changed and SPC needs to change with them.

Pericles argues that SPC-Ardmona cannot survive without being 'a drain on the public purse'.

But I am suggesting a low interest loan which will ultimately be repaid; Alongside a public co-investment -which is distinct from a 'handout'.

I am also arguing that SPC could be more competitive over the long term because dividends would be diverted into making the company more competitive; And money would be saved as a consequence of a flatter management structure.

The alternative is maybe 6000 jobs going in Shepparton and the surrounding area - with a big hit to the government (and hence us) re: tax revenue and the welfare bill.

BTW I am certain that the financial resources available to the ACTU are negligible when compared to the resources available to corporate Australia and the Federal Government. I'd estimate total affiliation fees to the ALP from unions to be perhaps a few million, for instance. (and maybe not even that) Compared with Gina Rinehart who is worth about $20 billion on her own.... That's one person (Rinehart) compared with a movement which organises almost 2 million Australian workers. (ie: note the discrepancy in financial resources, and the consequences for democracy)

Unions generally need to dedicate their funds to their core mission of organising workers, bargaining over wages and conditions, and contributing to civil society as a broader social movement.