Many burdens strangle farming unnecessarily

Fast forward to today, and the forecast production of wheat in NSW is set to exceed more than 7 million tonnes within the 2023-24 season alone.

There is no doubt that our progress as farmers has been second to none through the decades, despite the trials and tribulations of drought, flood, fire and plague.

In more recent years, the explosion of climate change, carbon and sustainability agendas on the international stage have created new questions and apprehension.

Meanwhile, land use conflicts, input costs and weather extremes have challenged us while commodity prices remain uncertain and competition reform ever elusive.

Being a farmer has never been easy, but for many, it's only getting harder.

As pressures on production only intensify, so too has demand - and more specifically, demand for the world-class food and fibre our farmers produce.

Meeting this demand will be no mean feat, and there has been lots of noise of late around how things will be done to support our state's agricultural sector.

But what farmers really want to know is what real action can we expect out of the state and federal budgets in the next few weeks to ensure we can keep feeding and clothing our nation.

Our road and rail infrastructure needs serious attention, and our workforce has been hard hit by labour shortages and dysfunction.

The threat of exotic pests and disease has never been greater, and reform to combat supermarket power misuse has never been more pressing.

Renewable energy infrastructure and urban sprawl - among other competing forces for land use - are threatening productive agricultural land, and ultimately, we cannot face these challenges alone.

Investment in our industry and its infrastructure is as vital as the food and fibre we produce. The federal and state treasurers must not forget our farmers in their funding.