Dear Secretariat,
I am writing to extend my thoughts on the EMDG Program. A couple of years ago I invented a MOG Remover, (Matter Other Than Grapes) this is a grape harvester attachment that has proven very effective in the removal of MOG from the Grape sample during harvest. The unit has proven itself in several countries internationally.
EMDG initially helped us look at the export market and supported us to export the product. EMDG gave us initial reassurance and support when we heading into the unknown export market. This aid was vital for the growth of our young business.
We will be extremely disappointed and unable to research or develop new exporting opportunities without the continued aid of EMDG. Being a smaller business (in comparison to some exporters), knowing we would recieve a sum back for our hard work gave us the incentive to give export a thought and continue to head that way in the future. If EMDG was not availalbe, exporting for us would financially not have been an option, as we were only receiving local sales.
It was cruical to get an export market when we did, because we were selling units within Australia and if we didnt look at exporting, there was the chance it could be copied. We had interest and enquiries through phone calls and internet from other countries, and needed to get there to view the conditions and see if the MOG Remover would be suitable to their vineyards. If we didnt have the EMDG backing, to do intial traveling and research for export, it may have been costly to get our product over there and not have the right modifications for the slightly different vineyard setups
Please take these points into consideration with your review of the EMDG program
Kind regards
Scott Messenger
S&R Enterprises (SA) Pty Ltd