EastAUSmilk and Government: 2024

EastAUSmilk’s engagement with governments will be just as active in 2024 as it was in 2023.

We need to make sure the Commonwealth and the states fulsomely implement the recommendations of the Food Security Inquiry and commit to a dairy industry package that builds sustainable incomes and milk production.

Early in the year we’ll be making a submission to the Senate’s inquiry into the misuse or market power by major supermarkets, and making clear that many of the problems in the dairy industry are based around supermarkets undermining industry viability.

Queensland will have an election on October 26, and we’ll want all parties to commit to policies and programs which build dairy industry viability. We’ll hope to see a taste of that in the 2024 Queensland State budget, too, and an acknowledgement of the issue from New South Wales and the Commonwealth.

During 2024, we expect the Commonwealth to start the process of reviewing the Dairy Industry Code, and we will be advocating major and urgent improvements.

New South Wales has a Dairy Industry Plan, and we will continue discussing the need for such a plan across Queensland’s dairying industries, with the Queensland Government, as we also discuss the Northern Dairy Industry Plan with both New South Wales and Queensland governments.

EastAUSmilk has already made a submission about the Queensland State budget 2024, and we will be doing the same for the Commonwealth and New South Wales.

We might have had a reprieve from drought, but we need to press those three governments about the deficiencies in their respective drought programs.

Bobby calf/dairy beef solutions remain a priority in our engagement with all three governments, and we’re awaiting feedback on recent proposals.

We’re hoping current negotiations with the Queensland government, to facilitate on-farm tech training and uptake bear fruit early in 2024.

… and early in 2024 eastAUSmilk will engage with the Commonwealth to ensure they adopt the recommendations of the Commonwealth Parliament’s Food Security report, and implement them properly – particularly the rescue package for the dairy industry.

Mike Smith, eastAUSmilk government relations manager.