China has dropped punitive tariffs against Australian barley producers but the fight isn't over with the two largest exporters remaining excluded.
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CBH and Emerald Grain have not been added to Chinese customs lists, meaning despite the tariffs being dropped, they cannot export their grain to China.
Trade Minister Don Farrell said the government was working with the industry and China to ensure all producers were promptly registered and allowed access to the market.
A CBH spokesperson said the decision to drop the tariffs was welcomed and the company continued to work with the Australian government to have the suspension lifted.
The spokesperson confirmed the federal government continued to lobby China on their behalf.
The exporter was suspended by Beijing on September 1, 2020 with the reason given that it didn't meet plant sanitary requirements.
CBH said it had found no evidence of this.
The backdown on tariffs was widely welcomed by Australian industry but it could take weeks for the changes to flow through.
Wagga Wagga-based exporter Murrumbidgee Grains, which handles and packs grains on behalf of about half a dozen producers, said 50,000 tonnes could soon start flowing to China.
But director Peter Hassall said it could take a few weeks for the ships to start given the weather and the availability of port slots.
"Guys just won't have shipping slots lined up and ready to go," he told AAP.
Senator Farrell said there was a strong case to get the World Trade Organisation to lift the high tariffs on Australian wine but he would rather reach an agreement with China through dialogue.
The government suspended its WTO action against China on barley in exchange for Beijing reviewing its tariffs, which it then dropped.
Senator Farrell said he hoped the resolution over barley would become a template to solving the wine dispute but left the door open for further action.
"This outcome demonstrates the importance of the WTO dispute in defending the interest of Australia's world-class producers and farmers and without such a mechanism, we would never have gotten China to the negotiating table," he said.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese flagged a potential meeting with President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in India next month.
He told parliament on Monday he remained open to dialogue and it was "in Australia's interest to have a stable bilateral relationship with China".
Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the government would continue to raise points of contention with China.
"We will continue to speak out as necessary on the issues that matter to Australians, including human rights, consular cases and trade issues," she said.
The trade minister said the government continued to encourage Australian businesses to diversify and take advantage of other markets.
Nationals leader David Littleproud also encouraged businesses to "calmly work through where they're going to send their product and export their product to in the future, learning the lessons of the past".
Australian Associated Press
