China-Australia relations: farmer laments ‘mistake’ of depending solely on Chinese market as supply chains shift

South Australian farmer Corey Blacksell said the biggest eye-opener for him last year was not so much the deteriorating relations between Australia and its biggest trading partner, but how Australia had become so complacent in its reliance on that one export customer: China.

The level-headed grain farmer, operating out of Pinnaroo town near the border with Victoria, counted himself among those fortunate farmers who nimbly managed to avoid financial ruin by replacing barley with other grains as China imposed anti-dumping duties on barley last May and later banned it.