Testing times for our farming community

Crisis management has become the norm for farm businesses across the state in recent years and the resilience of our farming community is truly being tested.

Farmers in the Mid North coast region will now have to rebuild fencing that was destroyed less than a year ago by bushfires. Livestock are missing, pastures and crops destroyed and stored fodder has floated away. Our oyster farmers, who felt the full impact of the Covid-19 shutdowns, are facing no income for some months due to stock losses and estuary closures.

Turf farmers and horticultural producers in the Sydney basin are facing a similar situation and now flooding and heavy doses of rain have hit the North West and south coast regions.

Meanwhile, in the central west mice are still wreaking havoc in paddocks and haysheds and rain is pushing more of them into farm homesteads.

There really is not much more that can be thrown at the farming community of NSW. Our ability to produce the world's best food and fibre is being tried on all fronts. Fortunately, farmers are a tough bunch and commodity prices for most agricultural produce are strong.

There is no doubt the recovery process for farmers in coastal regions and the Sydney basin will be long and hard. State and Federal Government support will be critical and NSW Farmers will be working closely with authorities to ensure that the right assistance for farmers and regional communities is available.

While flooding in the North West will result in damage to infrastructure and homes and will impact those with sorghum to harvest, soil moisture profiles will be full to the brim for the looming winter crop planting season. There may be some delays and some changes to cropping plans, but given the right climatic conditions, a second bumper crop is looking positive.

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