QDO chief executive Adrian Peake says some dairy farms had been inundated and evacuated and many had been without power, telecommunications and tanker access; some farms had to discard milk. Other properties experienced major damage to crops and infrastructure.
Category B assistance under the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA), which provides concessional loans and freight subsidies for primary producers, had been announced, Peake says. Industry is working on the flood response as a partnership between QDO, Subtropical Dairy, Dairy Australia, milk processors, and DAFF Queensland, including daily meetings updating the situation and critical issues.
Peake said early last week there were still properties isolated and facing power and infrastructure problems. Milk shortages were likely due to the impacts.
“Even while the milk cabinet could get empty or near empty, there will be no increase in price paid to the farmers, despite the major losses they are now incurring. We call on the retailers to support the industry in this time of need.”
The flood was a devastating event for many farmers, coming just two years after previous natural disasters had impacted the majority of the industry just 24 months ago, he said.
“Clearly the situation is critical from this disaster for many farmers, and industry is working with the government on coordinating the response to help dairy farming families through this difficult time.”
