California broccoli

Drought in California has hit the state's broccoli production

Australian broccoli is finding favour in Japan, after drought has cut California's exports to Asia, reports ABC.net.

Australia's weaker dollar is also helping to boost demand, as is the Japan Australia Free Trade Agreement, which this year removed the 3 per cent tariff on broccoli, the report said.

Kees Versteeg, sales and marketing manager at Qualipack in Queensland, told ABC.net his company would start major exports of broccoli to Japan for the first time this year.

'We started with a trial shipment to Tokyo last year, which sold out overnight,' he said. 'I've been part of a group with Trade and Investment Queensland to open up the market for vegetables in Japan.'

The drought in California has dramatically reduced vegetable production, particularly in the San Joaquin Valley and Central Coast, which generate over US$5bn worth of vegetables a year.

'When I was there in Tokyo last year, prices for broccoli from California doubled overnight,' Versteeg told ABC. 'By the end of the week, leaving Tokyo we thought, hang on there's an opportunity.'

Japan imported Australian broccoli up until 12 years ago but stopped.

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