After the changes at the helm of NSW Farmers at last week’s conference, including a new president, vice president and treasurer, the association is going to have some adjusting to do.
This will be even more so later this month when chief executive officer Matt Brand also departs to join Horticulture Innovation Australia.
Those taking the reins are enthusiastic about what they can achieve – and some fresh energy might be what’s needed.
Members will no doubt need to recognise it is going to take some time for the new crew to settle into their roles.
Members will also be keen to see what the plan will be for renewing the grassroots and lifting membership.
Incoming president James Jackson mentioned, upon being elected, that things were a “bit broken” at the branch level at the moment and that he’s looking to follow the model of the US’s Ag Bureau to encourage local “champions” to tell their story.
This includes those at a member level talking more directly to media, which Mr Jackson admits might create a bit more work for him as president having “a lot more spot fires to put out”.
The Land – while already working with the association on the coverage of many issues – certainly looks forward to seeing how this develops.
Farmers love to know what other farmers are thinking and doing, and growing that conversation has the potential to grow the voice of farmers overall.
In other areas the new team will have to make sure it maintains the momentum the outgoing leadership team has built.
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This includes a $7 million profit on the sale of the association’s previous building, and the ongoing pressure on a range of issues in the interests of its member base.
With an election year next year, it would also be great to see if a solid deal can be struck, as with last election, where a memorandum of understanding was reached with the Coalition.
There will be new relationships to cultivate, political sensitivities to understand, and previous agreements no doubt to take into account when negotiating.
Hopefully this doesn’t temper enthusiasm too much, as farmers need strong representation as much as ever.
This is especially evident with how slow the government has been in coming to the table with support in the current drought.
