Katunga Fresh left in limbo by tomato virus outbreak

By Taylah Baker

Feb 3, 2025

**Venus Corpuz, Nica Macabale, Marianne Emata, Haley Chen and Rubilyn Romero are among the employees stood down at Katunga Fresh.** Photo by Taylah Baker

The detection of a rare disease in a large crop of tomatoes at Katunga Fresh has plagued more than just the fruit.

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Tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV), found in seedlings recently moved from South Australia to a glasshouse at the facility on Numurkah Rd, has led to a full site shutdown and more than 100 workers being indefinitely stood down.

Among them is Marianne Emata.

Ms Emata, like many employees at Katunga Fresh, is in Australia on a working visa.

She said they were informed about the shutdown on Tuesday, January 28.

“Before then, our boss didn’t know if we were totally shutting down — we thought we were just going to clean and throw out everything, and if it’s negative again, we can plan,” she said.

“We were totally shocked, and we don’t know when it’s opening back up.

“We can’t expect it to be fixed any time soon, but for now, we’re holding out hope.”

Nica Macabale, Marianne Emata, Haley Chen and Rubilyn Romero face uncertain futures. Photo by Taylah Baker

To provide support, the Moira Shire Council established a hub at the Katunga Recreation Centre on Wednesday, January 29.

The hub offers groceries, mental health support and assistance with various issues, including visa matters, employment and training opportunities.

Red Cross, NCN Health, GOTAFE, Centrelink and Primary Care Connect were among the organisations present.

**Katunga Recreation Reserve serves as a community support hub.** Photo by Taylah Baker

Katunga Fresh owner Peter Van Den Goor said that it was good his workers had received help, but “there’s no help for us”.

“These seedlings that came supposedly had the virus in them, but there was no disease plans or nothing, so that’s what the staff didn’t understand, because they were looking good,” he said.

“The AV even checked last year themselves, and we were negative.

“We had to stop picking them as well — that’s all waste we have to throw away now.

“If they would’ve let us pick in the sheds, there would be none of this bulls**t, and we’d all still have a job.

“But now, they’ve brought in a 100 per cent shutdown, so they’ve taken away 100 per cent of our income.”

Expressing deep frustration, Mr Van Den Goor has awaited direction and clarification to resume operations.

Unfortunately, he said the Victorian Government hasn’t provided a plan or answers to any of his questions.

“If you lock the doors, have a plan in place,” he said.

“We worked out our financial position this morning [Friday] — how long we can last without being in production — and it’s between $1 and $1.5 million a month that we have to put in.”

**A biosecurity quarantine around the Katunga Fresh glasshouse has been in effect since Friday, January 17.** Photo by Taylah Baker

A source of anxiety regarding the shutdown is the flow-on effect on the broader community.

Katunga Fresh is well-known for hiring local workers throughout the Goulburn Valley region, including tradespeople, manufacturers and suppliers.

They also support local charities, such as footy clubs, agricultural shows and schools.

And then there are their loyal customers awaiting the return of high-quality hydroponic tomatoes on supermarket shelves.

Since Agriculture Victoria imposed a biosecurity quarantine around the glasshouse on Friday, January 17, no plant material — including tomatoes — may be moved from the property.

People who eat infected tomatoes, capsicums and chillies are not at risk, but crop yields can be slashed by up to 70 per cent.

Moira Shire Council administrator chair Graeme Emonson said council would continue to work closely with Katunga Fresh, their employees and families, local businesses and the wider community to support them through the challenges ahead.

“This is devastating news for the local business and our community, and we know it will affect many people,” he said.

“We will continue working proactively with lead agency Agriculture Victoria and Emergency Recovery Victoria to secure support from federal and state agencies to get the best outcome for Katunga.”