An independent research released by the Australian Made Campaign on Monday has shown that the majority of Australian businesses now have ‘a policy or preference’ for buying Australian-made goods wherever possible.
The report, which examined the purchasing habits of the commercial sector, revealed that nearly three quarters (74.4%) of Australian businesses favour locally made products, despite the fact that only 26.2% of all businesses surveyed were found to have an official policy in place.
The research also found that preferences for Australian-made goods vary only slightly across most product categories.
For example, ‘Australian-made’ was considered a bit more important when making purchases for roofing, plumbing and hardware supplies, than when making purchases for stationery and office supplies, tools, hardware and other industrial equipment.
Australian Made Campaign Chief Executive, Ian Harrison, said the latest results demonstrated progress when compared to the 2013 survey which found that less than two thirds (61.5%) of Australian businesses had a policy (20.4%) or preference (41.1%) for buying Australian-made.
“This research is encouraging, and offers hope for Australian producers,” Mr Harrison remarked.
“Businesses reinvesting in local industry and local jobs through sustainable purchasing policies will go a long way towards developing sectors which are resilient against a fluctuating dollar.”
He said supporting the community and economy were just a few of the reasons why businesses were choosing to buy locally made and grown goods.
“Increasing awareness of the high quality and safety standards Australian producers must meet, and demonstrable value for money over product lifecycles, are playing into these purchase decisions,” Mr Harrison added.
The results of the survey supported the findings of a similar study carried out by the Australian Made Campaign earlier this year. The said study revealed that future purchase intentions would be ‘heavily influenced’ by whether or not a product was Australian-made or Australian-grown, across all product categories researched.
Mr Harrison said producers should capitalise on the growing demand for locally made and grown goods by marketing their products with prominent country-of-origin branding.
Local businesses interested to have their products certified as genuinely Australian can do so at www.australianmade.com.au.
