Strawberry sabotage: Barnaby Joyce begs supermarkets to 'support strawberries'

Barnaby Joyce has urged Australians not to let the ‘criminals’ win and to keep supporting strawberry farmers, and told supermarkets to put the fruit back on their shelves.  

Six brands of strawberries have been recalled after needles were found in strawberries prompting a nationwide scare. There have been 20 cases of needle contamination reported across six states. 

Mr Joyce says the strawberry sabotage saga is not just a threat to the strawberry industry, it’s a threat to the food production industry. 

STATE BY STATE: What does the strawberry sabotage mean for you?

“The criminal who has done this needs to be hunted down. Someone out there knows who did this. The reward for this needs to be substantially increased,” Mr Joyce, the former National leader and agriculture minister told Today.

“Food at its very nature is open to threats, but you don’t give in to them.” 

Mr Joyce has also called on supermarkets to keep strawberries on the shelves.

“Don’t give the criminals the capacity to have a win by removing strawberries. We have to work together,” he said.

“We aren’t going to change the way we live for the criminal act of one person.”

Mr Joyce said compensation for affected farmers would have to be examined.

“We need to keep these people in their jobs. It’s not their fault.”

Since the saga broke two weeks ago, there have been a spate of copy cats planting needles in apples and bananas.

NSW Police say however they are 'isolated' incidents. 

As for a suspect police still don't have any confirmed motive. 

Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty yesterday said the sabotage was an "act of treachery against the nation", adding that copy cats faced 10 years in jail. 

A health warning to throw out or cut up strawberries remains in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and Queensland.