Coalition says market will be transferred to industry in the same vein as Queensland and Western Australia
Victoria’s opposition party has announced it will put the Melbourne Wholesale Fruit and Vegetable Market up for sale if it wins the state election in November 2026.
The Victorian state government currently owns and operates the state’s largest fresh-produce distribution hub.
Victorian Liberals and Nationals argued that state ownership no longer meets the needs of market participants and said it would transfer to industry, consistent with transitions in other states, including Queensland and Western Australia.
“This transition will provide industry participants the opportunity to secure an ownership stake in the market and will include public interest safeguards to ensure transparent and independently reviewable rents, fees and service charges, competition protections and minimum service standards,” the party said.
Shadow minister for agriculture, Emma Kealy, said the industry was better suited to running the market than the government.
“Labor has treated the Melbourne Market as a cash cow, imposing astronomical rent increases that are forcing wholesalers to question whether they can afford to stay, putting the future of the entire market at risk,” Kealy said.
“Our plan puts the market back in the hands of the people who know it best, giving growers, wholesalers and other industry participants a real stake in its future and the opportunity to invest in its long-term success.”
The sitting Labor government said it would not sell the market if re-elected.
“Victorians haven’t even voted yet, and [Opposition Leader] Jess Wilson is already selling off our assets,” Agriculture Minister Michaela Settle said in a statement. The Liberals are addicted to flogging everything off,” agriculture minister Michaela Settle said, in a statement provided to the ABC.
“Families are already doing it tough, and all this will do is make groceries more expensive and leave farmers worse off.”
The Melbourne Market is administered by the Melbourne Market Authority (MMA), its spokesperson said in a statement: “The Melbourne Market Authority remains focused on the safe and effective operation of the market for the benefit of Victoria’s fresh produce industry. Decisions regarding the ownership of the market are a matter for government”.
