The Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association has put its case to the state government to use the next State Budget to continue to support agriculture as a major pillar of the economy.

On top of our list of what we believe should be the government’s priorities is the question of biosecurity, protecting the integrity of the island’s produce from introduced pests, diseases and weeds.

Not only do we have 12 per cent of the nation’s fresh water, more and more of which is being captured in the irrigation roll-out, but the ratio of arable land to population is the highest in Australia, with agriculture occupying 24 per cent of the state’s land mass. We have the most usable sunshine in the critical ripening periods of summer and autumn.

If we are to meet our potential to increase the value of our annual production from $2 billion to $10 billion by the year 2050, we have to protect our resources.

For example, the current alarm over myrtle rust being detected at several sites here is well-founded even though it does not directly threaten our major production crops. If myrtle rust gains hold in our eucalypt forests, the landscape will change irretrievably. For farmers, it threatens shelter belts, hardwood plantations and forests important for their biodiversity, honey production, etc.

We believe the government has responded positively to issues of biosecurity; they deserve great credit for their swift and professional response to the myrtle rust problem.

They have to maintain the commitment. As production and markets expand biosecurity risks need to be paramount in all our minds. Now is not the time for government to be cutting its investment in agriculture.

We have put a number of other proposals to the government for it to consider in the Budget.

We believe that the strategic plan for the red meat industry, which has the support of suppliers, processors and livestock agents, needs a pair of hands at the wheel if we are to secure a sustainable production base. That person, funded by government or seconded from it, would work with the newly-formed Tasmanian Red Meat Industry Council.

Modern Tasmanian dairy herds are bigger and more productive and many farmers have bought additional land.

This often means moving herds from one property to another, using public roads. We are also asking the government for $500,000 to help provide stock underpasses below roads and highways to improve road safety, workplace safety and open up possibilities for expansion of farms. We are asking for an average $30,000 contribution towards the price of an underpass, which can cost up to $200,000.

To encourage more young farmers into the industry, we are seeking an exemption or concession for them from stamp duty on their first purchase of a farm. Under our proposal, eligible young farmers would get a full stamp duty exemption for first farmland worth up to $300,000 or a concession for land worth up to $400,000. There is a similar scheme in Victoria.

Paying electricity bills on the farm is made worse when you cannot be sure the bill is accurate. Many farmers are given bills representing estimates of the power they have consumed. This is usually because the meter readers cannot or will not access meters. So they make an estimate. With irrigation, it can be completely misleading, particularly in the winter when irrigators are not being used.

We want to see a rollout of smart meter technology to farmers. The meters would enable remote reading and eliminate estimates and reduce the cost of TasNetworks reading on-farm meters.

We also recommend the government establish a rural and farming legal centre to provide farmers with advice on matters such as:

trespass, easement or nuisance issues arising from interactions between farmers and neighbours, protestors, mining 
companies, etc;
fencing and other disputes;
representing farming interests in court in appropriate test cases
There is no doubt that we could keep the legal centre busy year round.

The TFGA Budget submission is on our website
TFGA president Wayne Johnston