Federal Member for Gilmore Ann Sudmalis has vowed to help dairy farmers of the Illawarra, Shoalhaven and South Coast so they don’t end up with hundreds of thousands in debt like their Victorian counterparts.
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Six farmers were chosen to represent the local industry and discuss issues surrounding sudden “retrospective” price cuts by dairy processing giants Murray Goulburn and Fonterra at the Liberal MP’s office on Wednesday.
Ms Sudmalis quickly put wheels in motion and wrote to the Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce that day to get the finer details of his $555 million milk rescue package.
We are nervous as to what our milk price will be.
- Paul Timbs
Dairy farmers will be able to borrow up to $1 million under the initiative, which will be funded by an expansion of the Commonwealth's drought concessional loan scheme to include dairy farmers hit by the current milk price crisis.
Ms Sudmalis said it was “concerning” to local farmers as they fear other companies like Parmalat, Paul’s and South Coast Dairy will also drop the price they’re willing to pay at the farm gate.
Nowra farmer Tracey Russell said the meeting was really positive and she was impressed Ms Sudmalis had studied the background before they arrived and “understood the plight”.
“We’re looking for long-term goals,” said Ms Russell. “We need to have this one dollar a litre milk outlawed, it’s going to ruin the industry.”
Sixth generation farmer Paul Timbs of Berry supplies to Murray Goulburn. Though he remains unaffected by the price cuts now, he worries they’ll “pull the rug out” from under him when his contract runs out at the end of June.
“We don’t know and we are nervous as to what our milk price will be,” said Mr Timbs.
Ms Sudmalis said it’s a difficult situation for the farmers where prices could be pushed “into a place that’s unsustainable”.
“They are in the process right now of negotiating the next set of contracts … but [the companies] are holding back and not giving them prices yet,” Ms Sudmalis.
“[The farmers] want to get in before the world comes tumbling down.”
All agreed the push for consumers to buy branded dairy products over homebrand needed to continue, to help get a better returns for the farmers.
“How the public has responded so quickly … that gives farmers encouragement to keep fighting on,” Mr Timbs said.
Ms Sudmalis will also investgate contracts and whether more government control could help stop “retrospective” pricing in the future.
“Deregulation has put a lot of pressure on farmers around here, coupled with increasing land prices,” Mr Timbs said.
“When things get tough you have to look at all the options and sometimes the easiest option is to sell up.”