Business Associations And The Food Processing Industry In Australia: How Neoliberalism Has Reinforced Employer Collectivism

Abstract

In this paper I argue that factors such as conflicting pressures for food regulation reform and continuing industry assistance programs have made conditions even more favourable for collective business interest representation in Australia's food processing sector. The push by firms for less onerous and more business-friendly regulation has run up against environmental and social pressures for more rigorous regulatory controls, as awareness grows of the risks of new technologies. The case of the Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) illustrates the issues. The extent to which this association participates directly in the design and implementation of public policy is indicative of a decline in the autonomy of politicians and the state bureaucracy vis-à-vis the ideology and interests of business.