Milk price increase welcomed

Kym said the increase offered some relief from increasing diesel and fertiliser prices, and will help elevate some of the pressure, considering some of her suppliers have already have put a fuel levy on some inputs, including grain, technicians and breeding supplies.

“Ideally, we would have liked 15 or 20 cents, but Woolworths have back paid us for March as well, so we are pretty happy,” Kym said.

The family, which includes Kym’s children Ashley and Torie, operate a pasture-based system milking 250 Aussie Reds.

“We rely on our winter pasture, and fertiliser application is critical for us right now, as we have started to sow.

“We have been lucky the lady from the local ag shop has been able to supply us with 10, one tonne bags of fertiliser, which will get us through — prices have doubled, but as a sole pasture-based operation, we just have to have it,” Kym said.

She said the business has also had trouble sourcing diesel after their farm supplier had his volume slashed.

“We get our diesel from Maleny, and the bloke there has had his volume cut to just eight per cent of his normal supply – I feel sorry for him too, because his business has been impacted as well, but he did manage to deliver us a load of diesel last week.”

Kym said they had been taking the tractor into town, which is a 10km trip each way, and filling up.

“We bought a fuel pod for the back of the ute, but the service station would only let us fill up a certain volume of the pod, so I am very glad we got a diesel delivery,” she said.

“We have been pretty worried about it all.

“It is one thing to be able to pay for diesel and fertiliser, but to be able to get them will be another.”

Kym said it had been difficult over the last few months and drought like conditions had added to the stress.

“We had 200mm of rain which filled our dams, but it has been pretty dry ever since,” she said.

“We have been lucky with the weather over the last few years — our last big drought was in 2019.”

The family has been supplying Woolworths for the past nine years an it has looked after the family well.

“The Queensland dairy industry has been doing it pretty tough, and we desperately need a decent price increase, we haven’t had one for five years, a few farmers have left the industry, and there isn’t too many of us left.”

eastAUSmilk president Tim Bale said the rising cost of diesel and fertiliser, along with other products, was causing major losses to dairy farmers.

“Dairy farmers have no choice but to cull cows, and this is exactly what many dairy farmers are doing,” Tim said.

“The only way this will stop is if milk prices paid to dairy farmers’ lift.

“We welcome the price increase, and thank Woolworths for their understanding and assistance in the very uncertain and difficult times.”

Tim said he worked with Woolworths 12 years ago to set up farmers owned milk with direct suppliers around the country.

“I am grateful that I was able to negotiate a 10¢/litre lift in prices with Woolworths on behalf of my farmers in NSW and Queensland,” Tim said.

“We want to see all retailers and processors follow the lead set by Woolworths in lifting prices paid to dairy farmers by 10¢/litre immediately.

“It is important for all dairy farmers to receive a price increase.

“Woolworths has clearly set the precedent, and any processors or retailers that do not follow their lead over the next week, will see a plummeting of their milk supply over the coming months.

“There is no time to wait, and I implore all processors and retailers to lift prices now before it is too late,” he said.