Earlier this year we argued along with a number of wheat growers that deregulating the Australian Export wheat market would send farmers broke.
Weethalle grower Michael Healy said after eight years suffering through the drought it was devastating to be left in such a precarious situation.
“We’ve had a real bad run over several years and finally when we get a bit of grain it’s not worth anything,” Mr Healy said.
“(The grain traders) are trying to get the farmers to panic and sell the grain for next to nothing so that they can line their own pockets.”
Many growers including the Wheat Farmers Action group, unsuccessfully fought tooth and nail against deregulation forced upon them by Federal Agriculture Minister Tony Burke.
Spiraling input costs have seen this years cost of producing a crop at around $300 a tonne. This is the first good crop for many farmers after years of crippling drought. However with some grain traders quoting cash prices closer to $200 a tonne this may well be their last crop.
As he starts to strip his first substantial crop since 2000, farmer Rodney Guest is wracked by uncertainty.
“There is no future in farming at these prices,” Mr Guest said.
“The message farmers are being sent is that (the Government) don’t want us.”
The question is not will there be grain farmers forced out of business by Minister Tony Burke and his free market mates Liberal Senators Bill Heffernan & Judith Adams & Liberal MP Wilson Tuckey , the question is now – how many?
(Thanks to Agmates Member Jock)
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