Soft commodities
China’s lust for the world’s smelliest fruit is making people rich
It is the size of a rugby ball and can emit an odour so powerful that it is banned from most hotels.
- by Thomas Fuller
Latest
The reality behind the headlines of Indonesia’s people smugglers
The men on Rote Island deny any involvement in two successful boat runs of illegal immigrants to Australia this year, but they know who we need to speak to.
- by Zach Hope
Chiquita banana company found liable for funding Colombian death squads
Chiquita bananas are famous all over the world. The company is the subject of a number of lawsuits brought by victims’ families in the US.
- by Jorge Valencia
US curbs Australian poultry imports on bird flu concerns
Australia earlier this week reported its first human case of avian influenza in a child in Victoria whom authorities said had been infected in India.
Milk for sale: Fonterra and other big cheeses behind Australia’s shrinking dairy industry
One of the nation’s largest dairy processors is pulling the plug on Australia, but it’s just the latest domino to fall in a sector that has been dwindling for decades.
- by Jessica Yun
Hawaii’s ‘famous macadamia nuts’ threatened by cheaper, undisclosed Australian imports
Macadamia nut trees are native to Australia and were introduced to Hawaii in 1881 by a Scotsman. The nut has since become synonymous with Hawaii.
- by Audrey McAvoy
Olive oil is getting harder to find and costing as much as 70 per cent more. Here’s why
Olive oil is among the essential household staples that have increased in price thanks to climate change’s impact on weather unpredictability, joining the ranks of cocoa and coffee.
- by Jessica Yun
Enjoy your Easter eggs this year. They will cost more in 2025
Cocoa prices have more than doubled since January, hitting a record high, so get ready to pay more for your chocolate.
- by Jessica Yun
Ukraine is employing a new weapon against Russia: sending aid to Africa
Even as the war-torn nation defends its homeland against the Russian invasion, it is delivering major shipments to vulnerable populations.
- by Rob Harris
Exclusive
Food
Why wealthy Londoners are paying $1400 for a jar of Australian honey
Billed as a new and healthier alternative of fine wine, the three varieties of Australian Rare are produced in Western Australia’s famed south-west ecoregion.
- by Rob Harris
Farmers’ protest turns deadly for mother and daughter ‘defending the profession’
Finding it hard to make ends meet, French farmers and their unions are urging the government to remember that without farmers there is no food on the table.
- by John Leicester