Labor refuses to rule out scrapping Ag Visa if elected

Vietnam recently became the first country to sing up to the program, but speaking at the National Farmers' Federation national conference, Mr Albanese said the Ag Visa "is not real at the moment" because workers were yet to arrive.

"If no one's come, guess what - it doesn't exist," Mr Albanese said.

"We'll do something better. We'll sit down with [the agriculture industry] and work on how we get a proper visa system, and how we get a proper workforce here."

However, the National Farmers Federation, who have spent the past five years lobbying for the visa, called on both sides of politics to commit to signing up at least 10 countries to the ag visa within a year.

NFF chief executive Tony Mahar said the industry had already made it quite clear about what a workforce solution looked like.

"We've developed a framework - that framework is called the Ag Visa," Mr Mahar said.

"If Labor doesn't like it, they need to say why and how they would make it work."

Labor agriculture spokesperson Julie Collins said recent Senate estimates had revealed different government departments had different views about what the visa would look like, pointing to conflicting information about whether numbers would be capped and if there would be a pathway to permanent residency.

Ms Collins said the lack of detail made it difficult for Labor to make a definitive call on the visa.

"The visa as described by the [Agriculture Minister], doesn't actually exist," Ms Collins said.

"We've been waiting to find out what these visas actually look like and what the bilateral agreements with other countries will look like."

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In September last year, Agriculture Minister David Littleproud said Ag Visa workers were expected on farms by Christmas. However, negotiations hit a hurdle, which Mr Littleproud blamed on the Australian Workers Union warning embassies with stories of worker abuse.

"The AWU has been relentless in its opposition to the Ag Visa and if the Labor Party doesn't give assurance that it will keep it if it is elected, then it will be a clear sign that the union movement will be running this country," Mr Littleproud said.

"There is one question that the Labor Party needs to answer and it's a simple yes or no; will the Labor Party keep the Ag Visa if it wins the election in May?

"If the answer is no, every Australian should understand they will pay more at the checkout for their fruit and vegetables because Anthony Albanese and Labor won't stand up to their political masters, the AWU."

Mr Littleproud recently revealed India had been invited to join the visa program. The government is also in negotiations with three South East Asian countries, one of which is Indonesia.