Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, who met young farmers and dairy leaders in Victoria’s Goulburn Valley on Wednesday, said the turmoil in the Australian dairy industry would be short-term and that global demand for dairy products would remain strong.
«We need a sense of resilience. But ultimately … once the issues in Europe go through the system, then the long-term trend of the increase in consumption of dairy products globally will continue,» he said.
«It’s not a case that the industry is in a systemic downturn, it’s got a short-term problem. And we’ll find our way through this and we’ll continue on.
«Your long-term trajectory on dairy consumption remains strong.»
Mr Joyce also denied there was a need for «exit packages» for dairy farmers.
The nation’s dairy farmers have been rocked in recent weeks as major dairy processors Murray Goulburn and Fonterra slashed the prices they pay farmers for their milk. The moves have hit Victorian dairy farmers hard. Victoria is clearly the biggest milk producer in the nation.
«It’s not a case that the industry is in a systemic downturn, it’s got a short-term problem. And we’ll find our way through this and we’ll continue on.
«Your long-term trajectory on dairy consumption remains strong.»
Mr Joyce also denied there was a need for «exit packages» for dairy farmers.
The nation’s dairy farmers have been rocked in recent weeks as major dairy processors Murray Goulburn and Fonterra slashed the prices they pay farmers for their milk. The moves have hit Victorian dairy farmers hard. Victoria is clearly the biggest milk producer in the nation.
During his Victorian visit Mr Joyce stepped around questions about whether he was about to announce a package of measures for the industry. «We are already delivering right now,» he said.
In response to the crisis, dairy farmers on Wednesday called for $20,000 in cash grants to help farmers survive.
President of the Australian Dairy Farmers lobby group, Simone Jolliffe, said farmers proposed a one-off $15,000 cash grant to help with expenses, and a $5000 «professional advice grant» that would help farmers make informed business decisions.
After meeting dairy leaders at a Shepparton dairy processing factory on Wednesday, Mr Joyce said he would ask for a change in eligibility criteria for drought recovery loans, which come at concessional rates, so that they were available to dairy farmers hit by plummeting milk payments.
«We have access to a quarter of a billion dollars a year which we got through the (Agriculture) White Paper in concessional loans, so let’s see if we can make more of that available for people in the dairy industry,» he said.
From August 1 the loans would have an interest rate of just 2.66%, he said.
Mr Joyce said dairy industry representatives had also called for more help with paperwork required when seeking a payment known as the Farm Household Allowance.
And he encouraged the nation’s other major retailers to «replicate» a move by Coles to raise funds for the dairy industry. Coles revealed this week that it planned to introduce a new homebrand milk product, from which 20 cents per litre would go to a fund to be spent on the dairy sector.
Tongala dairy farmer Scott Fitzgerald told Mr Joyce he was «not making any rash decisions» in the aftermath of the price cut.
«The shock of it all, the emotion, was pretty hard to digest initially,» he said. «It’s (going to be) extremely hard this year to break even.»
Another young farmer, Nathan Shannon, said there was a lot of anger about the milk price cut so late in the financial year and that some farmers would need to borrow more money to trade their way through.
«I also understand there are probably people that are at a very high risk and they won’t be able to trade their way through. How do we support those people…that’s a real challenge,» he said.
In response to the crisis, dairy farmers on Wednesday called for $20,000 in cash grants to help farmers survive.
President of the Australian Dairy Farmers lobby group, Simone Jolliffe, said farmers proposed a one-off $15,000 cash grant to help with expenses, and a $5000 «professional advice grant» that would help farmers make informed business decisions.
After meeting dairy leaders at a Shepparton dairy processing factory on Wednesday, Mr Joyce said he would ask for a change in eligibility criteria for drought recovery loans, which come at concessional rates, so that they were available to dairy farmers hit by plummeting milk payments.
«We have access to a quarter of a billion dollars a year which we got through the (Agriculture) White Paper in concessional loans, so let’s see if we can make more of that available for people in the dairy industry,» he said.
From August 1 the loans would have an interest rate of just 2.66%, he said.
Mr Joyce said dairy industry representatives had also called for more help with paperwork required when seeking a payment known as the Farm Household Allowance.
And he encouraged the nation’s other major retailers to «replicate» a move by Coles to raise funds for the dairy industry. Coles revealed this week that it planned to introduce a new homebrand milk product, from which 20 cents per litre would go to a fund to be spent on the dairy sector.
Tongala dairy farmer Scott Fitzgerald told Mr Joyce he was «not making any rash decisions» in the aftermath of the price cut.
«The shock of it all, the emotion, was pretty hard to digest initially,» he said. «It’s (going to be) extremely hard this year to break even.»
Another young farmer, Nathan Shannon, said there was a lot of anger about the milk price cut so late in the financial year and that some farmers would need to borrow more money to trade their way through.
«I also understand there are probably people that are at a very high risk and they won’t be able to trade their way through. How do we support those people…that’s a real challenge,» he said.
Source: The Age
