The National Fruit Fly Council (NFFC) hosted a Strategy Workshop at the EcoSciences precinct in Brisbane on Thursday 18 September with 40 participants representing affected industries, government, and the research community. 

The program combined two parts: a strategy overview session led by the NFFC team, and an economic analysis workshop presented by David Pearce from the Centre for International Economics (CIE). Discussion was constructive and focused on strategic actions that would deliver the greatest impact across the system. 

Key outcomes from the workshop included: 

• broad support for four proposed strategic themes guiding the next ten-year plan 

• agreement that independent economic analysis will underpin the strategy to ensure clear business cases and value for money 

• commitment to further engagement over the next year through a series of focused mini-symposium style webinars with industry, jurisdictions, and researchers 

• re-emphasised the critical importance of ongoing communication on both the long-term vision of the strategy as well as on existing work already underway. 

Immediate priorities 

Participants reinforced the importance of near-term actions alongside the long-term plan. Council members also noted strong support for ongoing northern border protection efforts, including work in the Torres Strait, to reduce the risk of exotic fruit fly incursions. Further targeted actions are being initiated immediately. 

“We are coupling a practical, near-term program with a clear ten-year direction. The strategy and the economics will move together so every priority is backed by evidence and delivers real outcomes,” said Stuart Burgess, Manager, National Fruit Fly Council. 

Next steps 

• NFFC will circulate a short workshop summary to participants and the wider stakeholder group 

• a series of topic-focused webinars and the 2026 Fruit Fly Symposium are being planned, creating further opportunities to test themes and gather input 

• a NFFC meeting held directly after the workshop immediately incorporated some of the initial feedback received into its work program. 

If you attended the workshop and have additional thoughts you would like to share, please contact Stuart Burgess.