"To plan a way through this difficult moment, we have been working closely with the commercial fishing industry. We have a variety of methods to promote recreational fishing as well as complete support for impacted fishermen," she said.
The Liberals have consistently demanded a medium- to long-term plan to support the fishing industry, and SA opposition primary industries spokeswoman Nicola Centofanti said she was "happy to see the government has finally come to the table, eight months after the dangerous algal bloom began."
"We are happy to see the government finally listen to our concerns and take the first step towards offering voluntary buy-backs for individuals who want to leave the industry," she said, adding that not everyone in the sector wants to weather this storm.
The declaration on Thursday followed the October 14 release of a $102.5 million algal bloom summer plan, which was jointly funded by the federal government and the state. $48 million for coastal businesses and communities, $17.3 million for science, research, and monitoring, $20.6 million for environmental restoration, and $16 million for "ensuring South Australians can enjoy their summer."
Because stickers, sometimes referred to as price look-up codes or PLUs, are helpful even though they might be problematic: In addition to price data for supermarket checkout scanners, they occasionally provide information about the type of food, its growing location, and whether it is organic.
In an attempt to address the 800,000 tonnes of plastic garbage the state produces annually, NSW plans to phase out plastic fruit stickers by 2030, while Tasmania has also pledged to doing away with them.
A National Retail Association spreadsheet on the current status of plastic legislation states that no other state or territory has any urgent intentions to ban them.
According to the Australian Fresh product Alliance, SA's first timeline was impractical and left the industry with little time to switch to compostable product tags.
It stated that product stickers played a "vital role" in fulfilling retail and regulatory requirements in a submission to the NSW government's "Next Steps" plastics review.
"While there are alternatives to fruit stickers, like plastic film wrap or laser labeling, they are not as easily available, commercially viable at scale, or environmentally beneficial overall," the report stated.
Earlier this year, an apple grower in Adelaide Hills who has already begun using compostable stickers told ABC that they were nearly twice as expensive and more likely to come off because of the adhesives used.
Joseph Ceravolo, however, supported a nationwide strategy to outlaw them.
"This is the next natural step to take in terms of eliminating plastic in the business, but in order to assure supply and provide a level playing field for everyone, most of the main states must move at the same time," he said.
According to SA Environment Minister Susan Close, the state will collaborate with NSW to enact a ban on non-compostable stickers concurrently, which may lower the price of substitutes.
An explanation of the intricacy of the proposed prohibition can be found on the "Replace the Waste" webpage in South Australia. It stated that "companies that import fruit into South Australia must ensure that where fruit and vegetables are branded, the labels comply with the South Australian requirements," but that it would not apply to SA produce sold into interstate markets.
It stated that although plastic produce stickers ought to be taken off before being placed in council organics or home compost bins, this was not often the case.
"The prohibition will make sure that plastic vegetable stickers do not end up in compost outputs as contaminants."
According to Clean Up Australia, the non-compostable stickers decompose into micro-plastics that contaminate soil and rivers if they do wind up in compost. According to the report, businesses find it more difficult to get rid of spoiled or damaged produce because of the stickers.
According to an article on the organization's website, "Unfortunately, vast quantities of damaged produce with PLUs wind up in landfill where they emit methane emissions and contribute to greenhouse gases."
France is already the first country in the world to outlaw plastic produce stickers, and the UK has now started a public push to do the same. New Zealand postponed its July ban until 2028, citing the challenge of locating a widely accessible compostable adhesive as the reason.
It appears that Australian legislation is a case of "watch this space." In the meanwhile, keep removing the plastic stickers before you put fruit in your mouth or in the compost.
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