Perfection Fresh to cut 'significant' number of jobs amid tomato virus outbreak

Hundreds of tonnes of ripe tomatoes going to waste. Perfection Fresh in the Adelaide Plains is one of three businesses that's detected tomato brown rugose fruit virus. which arrived in Australia for the first-time last month. The S-A Government's decision to stop tomatoes from being sold from the properties. has led to the company letting go of hundreds of staff. “A significant cohort of those workers are palms workers -- that is pacific islander workers who come here to undertake the work. along with employees from other migrant communities.” The virus can affect tomatoes' appearance but it's otherwise safe to eat. The real threat is to the plants themselves. With the potential to reduce marketable yields by up to 75%. “Where we have the option to curtail the impact the state government has an obligation to do so.” WA and Queensland have banned SA tomatoes and New South Wales is only taking fruit from properties in the clear. “Nationally a number of scientific experts have come together to decide how do we contain this disease. and they’ve all agreed that fruit is a pathway for spread.” Tony Sacca is waiting on test results at his farm in Virigina, north of Adelaide. While they government says tomato prices are unlikely to be affected... Mr Sacca is concerned sustained restrictions could cause flow-on effects at the check-out. “Interstate where they’ve blocked the borders they’re not going to have availability to tomatoes or very limited supply and they could be up to 50, 60 dollars a kilo.” Biosecurity authorities have taken thousands of samples from 18 sites. In the hopes of stamping the virus out before it takes hold in Australia. “At the moment the evidence is only showing detections in three businesses so on that basis eradication is entirely possible.” An employee assistance hub will open in Virgina tomorrow to help Perfection Fresh's now former staff. Perfection Fresh says its working with the state government as well as unions and fruit and vegetable producers to find jobs for the staff who have been stood down. It says each person will receive their full entitlements and it hopes to re-hire as many as possible when production resumes in the future.