The allegation has drawn a strong rebuke from the European Commission, which has attacked the complaint and SPC.
The Australian Anti Dumping Commission has made a preliminary finding that the complaint has not yet been proven.
The application by SPC seeks the publication of a dumping notice and countervailing duty notice on the Italian goods.
The application alleges that the goods have been exported to Australia at prices less than their normal value.
“SPC seeks to compete in the Australian market with fairly priced imports,” the company’s submission states.
“SPC does not consider that imports from Italy are priced on a fair basis. This application demonstrates that exports from Italy are at dumped and subsidised prices that have undercut SPC’s selling prices throughout the proposed investigation period.”
SPC maintains it has lost market share to the imports.
The Association of Italian Vegetable Processors, which represents the vast majority of Italian tomato processors, said the application does not contain evidence relating to dumping, injury and the causal link between the two, but rather a mere assertion.
Australian Anti Dumping Commission acting commissioner Isolde Lueckenhausen said in an interim report: “From our analysis of the documentation, no evidence of dumping or subsidy emerges, in our view”.
“At this time and based on the evidence and the analysis undertaken to date, I am not yet satisfied that any injury to the Australian industry has been caused by any dumping or subsidisation that may have occurred,” Ms Lueckenhausen said.
“Accordingly, I am not yet satisfied that there appears to be sufficient grounds for the publication of dumping duty and countervailing duty notices on the goods exported to Australia from Italy and have not made a Preliminary Affirmative Declaration.”
The Association of Italian Vegetable Processors said in a submission it was difficult to understand how the prices of preserved tomatoes from Italy have depressed the prices of SPC.
The European Commission has accused the Australian Anti Dumping Commission of violating World Trade Order rules and being overprotective of the Australian company’s right to confidentiality.
The highly critical submission by the European Commission takes a shot at SPC and its history.
“Considering that SPC has a history of financial issues it would seem that, with its outdated manufacturing equipment, it is simply unable to develop competitive offers and promote its product on the market,” the Brussels-based submission said.
“In October 2023, SPC launched a capital raising campaign, asking Goulburn Valley residents to buy $20 million worth of shares in the company to fund equipment upgrades needed to make SPC more competitive.
“This was the second time within a relatively short period that SPC had sought tens of millions of dollars in funding, as it was only a decade ago that the company received federal and Victorian government funding for operational upgrades.”
The Australian Anti Dumping Commission is waiting on replies from the Italian producers to questionnaires they were asked to complete.
The commission must make a recommendation to the Australian trade minister in March.
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