Australian mask manufacturer dumped for cheaper overseas suppliers
ABC Goulburn Murray
/ By Charmayne Allison
Posted Tue 20 Jul 2021 at 8:27am
On the factory floors of Australian mask manufacturer Med-Con, eight of the 10 machines sit silent.
Key points:
Australian mask manufacturer Med-Con says health services are dumping local suppliers for cheaper overseas options as the pandemic eases
Last year, the federal government asked Med-Con to boost its supply of masks from two million to a staggering 60 million by November
Experts say high-quality masks continue to be crucial in containing the spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19
It's an eerie contrast to the noise and activity of the site last year when production was at its peak.
"All the people we've supported throughout the pandemic seem to have left us," chief executive Steven Csiszar said.
When the pandemic hit at the start of 2020, Med-Con was the only surgical mask manufacturer in the entire country.
Suddenly the small family-owned business, based in Shepparton, Victoria, was thrust into the spotlight.
It looked like borders were going to close, freezing imports. But Australian health services needed masks immediately.
The federal government begged Med-Con to boost its supply from two million to a staggering 60 million masks by November 2020.
The masks we buy from overseas are made in filthy conditions:
https://media.gab.com/system/media_atta ... 22ba2d.mp4
We have penny pinching bean counters who buy dirty crap products to save money
and they don't care about Australian workers or business.
