The newly signed agreement will disadvantage the Australian dairy industry, intensifying import competition and adding to the already significant operating pressures facing local dairy processors and farmers, the council said.
Australia will face increasing exposure to imports and a European-style regulatory naming regime will be imposed on Australian consumers and processors alike.
ADIC Chair Ben Bennett said the deal should be labelled the “un-fair trade agreement (UFTA)”.
“It is unfair on many fronts – most notably it expands access to heavily subsidised European dairy imports, while failing to secure reciprocal access for Australia’s exports to the EU.”
New data shows the imbalance in the trading relationship is already stark.
In 2025, Australia imported 76,821 tonnes of EU dairy valued at more than $980 million, while exports to the EU totalled just 134 tonnes worth $29 million.
“The numbers speak for themselves – there’s nearly a billion dollars of subsidised EU imports compared to a limited $29 million of unsubsidised Australian exports,” Mr Bennett said.
The agreement imposes the EU’s geographical indication naming regime on Australia, restricting the future use of widely recognised product names such as Feta, Gruyère and Romano, while also removing one of Australia’s most significant dairy import tariffs on cheese.
“We are being asked to give up established commercial freedoms without securing meaningful market access,” Mr Bennett said.
ADIC Deputy Chair John Williams said the timing of the agreement was made more concerning given converging pressures.
“Competitiveness is not determined by one policy in isolation, it is the combined impact of trade settings, regulation, energy and global costs,” he said.
With dairy contributing $18.5 billion to the national economy and supporting more than 70,000 regional jobs, the consequences extend well beyond the sector itself.
“If we want value-added manufacturing to stay in Australia, policy settings must support competitiveness,” Mr Williams said.
Shadow Assistant Minister for Agriculture Sam Birrell, said the deal locks in weak outcomes for key farming sectors and makes excessive concessions on geographic indications, undermining Australian producers.
“Australia is a trading nation, and our agricultural sector is highly export-exposed,” Mr Birrell said.
“We support an ambitious agreement with the European Union because regional jobs and farmgate returns depend on strong access to international markets.
“Australian dairy producers were among those particularly hard hit and this is a raw deal for dairy farmers when they are already facing other pressures.
“Producers will face restrictions on the use of widely recognised product names such as feta, gruyere and romano, while at the same time Australia is removing tariffs on imported and subsidised European cheese.”
Mr Birrell said any tariff benefits should not come at the cost of Australian producers losing naming rights for the wine sector.
“We fought to keep the term ‘Prosecco’ at home and abroad but over 10 years it will be phased out for exports imposing significant transition costs on local producers,” he said.
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