Continuously improving Australia’s dairy competitiveness and profitability is a key goal for the Australian Dairy Industry Council (ADIC) and its newly released Sustainable Farm Profitability Report – a framework for farmers and their advisers to help identify areas for improvement.
Officially launched in Victoria today, the report brings together information and references from real farm data and advisers, to draw conclusions about the range of things that make a difference to farm profitability.
While there is no silver bullet to profitable dairy farming in Australia, the report pinpoints key drivers of successful dairy businesses and highlights long-term strategies within farmers’ control to help focus business management plans.
“Profitability is not all about expansion and size, especially not if expanding means increasing costs to increase output,” ADIC Chair and dairy farmer, Noel Campbell said.
“It is our hope that this report provides farmers with the tactical, strategic management guidance that, when used in conjunction with other resources, will enable them to improve their long term profitability.”
The report recognises that dairy farms are infinitely more successful when farmers are good at managing their business across the board, with a combination of technical and financial skills that achieves balance to allow business to flourish and better mitigate risks.
The report received strong support from State and Federal politicians, with Federal Minister for Agriculture, the Hon. Barnaby Joyce MP, endorsing the industry-driven initiative.
“With volumes and values of global dairy trade expected to grow, driven by increasing demand, our opportunities in overseas markets will depend on doing what we’ve always done well – but more effectively,” Minister Joyce said.
“Dairy producers looking to build their farming and business management skills and identify opportunities to improve their on-farm business operations will find advice and ideas here.”
Victorian Minister for Agriculture, Jaala Pulford also welcomed the move, describing dairy as a “critical industry” while highlighting the need for Government and the dairy industry to work together to ensure farmers are supported to better understand their financial situation and to build financial flexibility to deal with volatility.
“To achieve consistently high results, farmers require a broad range of both farming and business management skills,” Minister Pulford said.
“That’s why the Labor Government is investing in the next generation of young farmers, through initiatives like our Young Farmer Scholarship Program, to ensure our future farmers are set up for success.”
As dairy farmers and industry organisations continue to work on profitability and competitiveness the ADIC looks forward to Government initiatives to support our industry growth and sustainability.
Media Contact:
Shona McPherson, Media Officer
M: 0447 161 919
E: media@australiandairyfarmers.com.au