Dairy Levy Poll - Vote Now!
Flood recovery has been front of mind at present and you could be forgiven if you have forgotten all about the dairy levy poll because honestly, we had too.
If you are yet to submit your vote, be sure to do so today. Voting in the Dairy Levy Poll is due to close Thursday, 31st March. Everyone who pays the levy is eligible to vote.
Voting is easy to do online at dairypoll.com.au you will just need your member number which can be found on the ballot paper in the information pack mailed out by Dairy Australia last month. If you do not wish to vote online you can use the ballot paper and submit by email or fax. It is likely too late to send it in by post.
There are four levy options to vote on, being no change to the levy, an increase of 15%, an increase of 20% (which is recommended by the Advisory Committee) or an increase of 25%.
The dairy levy poll is using ‘preferential voting’ where you number the options one to four in order of your preference.
Once the votes are counted, if one of the options has an absolute majority, over 50% of the votes, then that would be the winning option.
If no option has an absolute majority, then the option with the least votes is eliminated from the count with the votes for the eliminated option being redistributed among the remaining options according to the second preference.
If the eliminated ballot did not mark a second preference, then the ballot is deemed ‘exhausted’ and excluding from further counts.
This process continues until one of the options achieves an absolute majority.
This is the first time in 10 years that we have the opportunity to vote on the amount that levy payers will need to contribute into the future. The outcome of the vote will affect all levy payers so it is important as many levy payers as possible have their say and submit a vote.
Torie Harrison – Project Team eastAUSmilk
Lismore floods - a farmer’s perspective
Peter Graham of Rich River Farms, Coraki in New South Wales knew this flood was going to be a significant one due to prior rainfall on the Thursday, Friday (300ml), Saturday (500ml) which came down from the three catchment areas, that were already full, into the Wilsons River.
Sunday night at 5 minutes to 10 Peter received a text from a friend to say there is a lot of water coming your way mate, so be prepared. The three catchments upstream were at record levels of 15.4 meters.
Never has this level of water been seen before.
On the home front internet was intermittent so Peter couldn’t even check the BOM, but when he finally did it hit home for him and his family.
Living on a flood plain and experiencing the levels of previous floods, Peter had some idea what he and his family were in for, but not to the magnitude of what did happen, such was the amount of water and speed in which it was travelling.
‘Compare this flood to other floods it would normally take 12 hours to fill our basin, this flood took 4 hours’.
When Peter arose on the Monday morning, across the gully he saw 100 odd cows stranded, which didn’t want to move and to get to the cows was going to be a mammoth task. Experiencing a moment of anxiety after seeing the cows he had no answers as to how to get to them – only hope that they would be safe in the long term.
What goes through your mind at that moment?
Peter feels very fortunate today as he reflects on the past weeks, he knows he has lost a few cattle where he leases property but can’t get to that property at the moment to see the aftermath.
On the Sunday night after the storm Peter had no power for 9 days due to a generator malfunction and not being able to source another one immediately. He has been milking once a day for the past week and his first load of milk was picked up on Saturday morning.
With the ongoing issue of dealing with mud, mastistis, machinery issues and the list goes on this flood will go down in history for all the wrong reasons.
The enormity of the situation becomes apparent and raises some very valid questions as to ‘why am doing this’? Because I love being a dairy farmer and I love my cows!
Lynelle Rogers – Executive Assistant eastAUSmilk
Invisible Dangers after a Flood
It seems like we can’t catch a break, first the fires, then the drought and now floods. Farmers have been affected all around South East Queensland and North East NSW where there is a big clean-up job and damage assessments underway. However, these wet and humid conditions that follow a flood event are the ideal environments for bacterial diseases to thrive posing a risk to yourself as well as staff who are assisting with clean up.
In previous floods the rates of Leptospirosis, Melioidosis and mosquito borne viruses (Ross River, Barmah Forest virus etc) increase. Incubation periods are 5-15 days for Leptospirosis, 1-21 days for melioidosis and 2-15 for mosquito borne viruses although symptoms can present up to 30 days after.
Symptoms include:
Leptospirosis – flu like symptoms, red eyes, stomach pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, cough, yellowing of skin and eyes, skin rash
Melioidosis – Fever, pain/swelling, chest pain, headache, stomach pain, joint pain, all depending on where the infection is present
Mosquito Borne Virus - headache, fever, joint or muscle pain, skin rash, fatigue and nausea
Minimising your risk:
Cover cuts and abrasions,
Wear gloves where possible and wash hands thoroughly before eating, drinking and/or smoking
Shower thoroughly after contacting contaminated floodwaters, soil and mud
Application of insect repellent, especially dawn & dusk; wearing loose, light coloured clothing
Use respiratory protection (P2 or higher) if possible to minimise melioidosis infection
Various Government and Non-government assistance is available and the list continues to grow for those who are affected by the floodwaters.
Government:
Disaster recovery payment - $1000 per person, $400 per child under 16 for eligible LGA’s
Emergency hardship assistance grants - $180 per person, $900 for families of 5+ persons
Extraordinary Disaster Assistance Recovery Grants - $75,000 for flood affected producers
Disaster assistance loans – Up to $250,000 for 10 years
Not for profit:
Rural aid – financial aid, fodder, farm army and counselling
Lions NEED4FEED – assistance with emergency fodder
Drought Angels – financial support and farm assistance
BlazeAid – resurrecting fences and clean up
Please feel free to contact with the team at eastAUSmilk on 07 3236 2955 or Jade on 0437 923 398 if you need any assistance with application forms, resources and/or want to register for BlazeAid to come to your property to help with fencing.
Jade Chan – Project Officer eastAUSmilk
Mandatory Dairy Code needs further changes over coming 12 months
The Federal Department of Agriculture has said that the Mandatory Dairy Code is "working as intended" in its first mandated review of the Dairy Code. Surely the question is whether this is good enough.
We do not oppose the suggested recommendations within the report. Indeed we welcome them and we call upon the Federal Government to implement them immediately.
Yet the report also states that, in referring to the ACCC review of the dairy industry that there is 'market failure'. When will this be addressed? Farmgate prices might be good now but for how long?
Dairy farmers need the Code to be more than "working as intended". Dairy farmers want a Code that continues to adapt to its environment and ensures that is able to be enhanced to grow with the dairy industry over time.
This is what we need the Code to be - a mechanism that enables dairy farmers to engage with their processors to ensure a strong and transparent farmgate price. We want an Australian dairy industry that will grow not stagnate.
To do this we need dairy stakeholder support, we need government initiatives and above all, we need dairy farmers and processors to work constructively together so that the Code can continue to be more than "working as intended".
The report, based upon submissions and consultation that occurred over the past 12 months, has shown that government and dairy industry players can work constructively as we guide the Code to new levels of accountability and dairy growth. This needs to continue and the Department's dairy consultative group needs to be reconvened and that positive engagement continued.
This will ensure that our messages are heard and where they can, acted upon in a timely manner and in the best interests of dairy farmers.
Having said this, there is a third player in the supply chain that seems to be ignored. Supermarkets and retailers should no longer play a role outside the operations of the Code.
Dairy is quite different to other agricultural commodity groups and the Code could provide greater certainty for dairy farmers and processors within the dairy value-chain, especially if the Code is extended to include their interactions with supermarkets. The protections afforded to fresh food farmers within the Food and Grocery Code are not providing the safeguards needed.
It is about looking at what works and finding ways for a constructive way forward. There is no need to reinvent the wheel. Examples and precedents lay in Codes already in existence and operation, especially clauses within the Franchising and Sugar Codes.
Members of eastAUSmilk are here ready for the challenge. All those in government and elsewhere need to do is call upon us.
Shaughn Morgan – Co CEO eastAUSmilk
Let’s set our own future
On December 1, 2021, eastAUSmilk began with the merging of QDO and Dairy Connect Farmers group. It is a new concept that allows a fresh start and a chance to do things a little differently. While we have a strong presence and long history in both QLD and NSW it's time to have a good look at what we do well, and what we can do better.
One of the important tasks that eastAUSmilk will need to complete over the coming months is to develop a strategic plan. This may sound a bit boring, but it is actually important for our company and our members. A strategic plan will identify why we exist and what we want to achieve for our members. It's a chance for the board, the company and members to identify issues we need to address and then prioritise.
This is not something that the board and staff of eastAUSmilk can do alone. We need the assistance and insight from our members, and our potential members, on what direction we should take.
Over the past 5 years there has been a strong focus on retail pricing given $1/L milk. Both QDO and Dairy Connect that make up eastAUSmilk played a central role in removing $1/L milk and now all milk is at least $1.30/L. The price is now moving up, which is sensible given increases in costs of production, without the anchor of a fixed retail price. Moving forward, we need to decide what else to focus our attention on in the next few years.
We will undertake an extensive consultation process with our members and potential members. We will listen to what our farmers think we should do and we will ensure that these views are properly taken into account. We will not ignore what farmers tell us but embrace your feedback.
Member meetings will occur across QLD and NSW during March and April. I strongly encourage all interested dairy farmers to attend and have their say. Dairy farmers will be notified about the details of proposed meetings in March.
Yes you have been asked for feedback many times by many in the dairy industry and I too feel that we have not always been listened to. This is a chance to be heard by a growing organisation that values your opinions.
Please contact your eastAUSmilk directors or staff if you would like to know more.
Matthew Trace– President eastAUSmilk
