When the COVID-19 pandemic threatened to capsize the Geraldton Fishermen’s Co-operative, it found an unlikely compass to help navigate the choppy waters.
Battered by trade winds and caught in the riptide of global uncertainty, the Geraldton Fishermen’s Co-operative (GFC) found itself in dire straits in 2020.
Lunar New Year celebrations – typically a bonanza for the co-operative – were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Lobster demand plummeted, and prices dropped to an unthinkable zero.
The co-operative, responsible for about 60 per cent of Western Australia’s $500 million rock lobster industry, was forced to take drastic action and halt all deliveries.
As the world continued to grapple with the impact of the pandemic, another blow landed in 2021: trade tensions with China.
Stringent new inspections for Australian lobsters led to extended customs clearance times, raising concerns about product viability and further dampening demand.
In these turbulent waters, the GFC found an unexpected ally in the Mutual Value Measurement Framework (MVM).
Read the full case study, Weathering the storm: New tool a lifeline for lobster fishing industry, in Monash Business School’s IMPACT, 22 May 2024