Well said. A factual account of the situation.
Add to this the years of political neglect the bush people have endured and still ventured on. Also the serious disconnect between city and country which manifests itself in political and commercial policies as well as social issues and infrastructure.
How many city folk could manage a $700K to $2.0m loan with no income, drought stricken 18 months and still have to get out there at sunrise and tackle a hard days work, retaining a positive outlook.
5% of Australians live remotely in 85% of our country producing 70% of our trade-able wealth and most of them are family based farming enterprises.

Well said - May God bless you and all farming families.

Good on you Rebecca, the bush needs educated advocates who are unbending in their desire to improve the lot of our people.

The fact that so few are educated in the real issues is an measure of the failing of the industries various industry organisations who's peak body the NFF have systematically led the push toward the removal of all the industry policy mechanisms used to counter the various issues faced by rural producers and their communities.

There does seem to be a recognition of the need to abandon the past policy methods and seek new, the fact the WA drought pilot program seems to have been abandoned as a failure tells us that a new direction is soaking into the thought processes of those who make the decisions.

but it is at our peril that we abandon manufacturing to nations who have today comparative advantage, that if we follow the comparative advantage philosophy to the end we will as nations before us become the white trash of south east Asia. The choice between protection and free markets should be high in peoples minds.

Primary production is the engine of the nations economy, if it is ill them the rest of the economy will stumble, it is very important to keep it healthy, no matter how we go about it.

Nev

Hi Rebecca,

A good article overall. Yes agriculture is cyclical, seasonal and subject to the vagaries of weather. Always has been and always will be, broad based irrigation excepted.

It is a primary industry with enormous potential for expansion if we can get the irrigation and economics right.

I’m afraid you did lose considerable creditability with the comment “unprecedented extreme weather conditions”.

That my dear is a political “porkie”. Try to avoid flashing your Green tendencies and you may go far.

What the bush doesn't need is the lunatic fringe, banning the construction of dams! Dams that would provide some water surety, where there is none now!
Dams that would mitigate against floods, which currently ravage town and country, or all in their path, and in the final cruel insult, dump millions tons of alluvium, time and again, on the Great Barrier reef!
The same lunatic fringe jump up and down, screaming abuse, if anyone should suggest we mine the already dead parts of the reef, for a possible bonanza of very cheap, very low carbon and almost ready to use as is, fuels.
Fuels that would allow many farms to continue, and airlines to fly at a guaranteed profit!
And a lunatic fringe that is automatically against coal seam gas, even though much of the currently problematic water, would allow a number of underground irrigation prospects, where none are currently possible! And as simple as pumping salt water around through underground agpipes, wrapped in mem-tech membrane.
Then plant various crops types, with better pulling power than pumps, to use this ultra reliable water 24/7 365 days a year!
What the bush needs is a different economic model, low cost loans, and a source of income that would continue, through, drought, fire and flooding rain. Things like fish farms, fodder sheds and feed lots, that utilize new sources of more reliable and cheaper feed than the usual grain.
Things like salt frost and drought resistant native wisteria, that can supply bio-diesel, with the very high protein ex crush material, suitable for more than just feed lots, but some fish farms as well!
Doing what you've always done, will get you what you've always got!
Rhrosty.

Water is becoming an ever more precious commodity, caused in part by climate change as indicated by the Department of Meteorology and CSIRO. They list drought as being a factor which will be more of a force in the future in areas already subjected to drought.
Climate change is real; if you do not believe it, google what's happening in the Arctic area. Also, google drought in the Amazon region. Methane is being voided in many areas where it had not previously been voided from to the extent that it is now. Areas of perma frost are melting and methane and methane hydrates are being voided from shallow seas in the Arctic area. Some methane is also being voided from Antarctica. Methane being voided is a fairly new phenomena ( apart from livestock, which is no problem in comparison)and excess carbon dioxide still being produced.

So how water is to be stored is one major matter to consider. The other is for the government to do something real to mitigate against climate change. Farmers pushing their parliamentary representatives to do something to mitigate climate change is important to help themselves and others.