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Gippsland Ag News
 
Friday, 18 December 2020
Happy holidays

Pa-rum pum pum pum, thank you for your support throughout 2020.

Wishing you a jolly holiday season, to you and your families.

Northern Ag News will be back on deck on Thursday, 28 January 2021, fa la la la la!

In this edition:
Coronavirus (COVID-19) update
Summer safe

COVIDsafe Summer restrictions

COVIDSafe Summer restrictions came into effect at 11.59pm on Sunday 6 December 2020 and are now in place across Victoria until at least the end of January 2021. See the Premier’s statement or visit coronavirus.vic.gov.au for more details.

Victorian Border Crossing Permit

From midnight 18 December 2020 a permit system will be in place for all NSW residents travelling to Victoria, residents from other states travelling through NSW and Victorians visiting NSW and returning home. Anyone trying to enter Victoria from the Northern Beaches and other NSW exposure sites (red zone) will not be permitted to enter.

The Health advice for NSW travellers arriving in Victoria provides more details. Stay up to date by visiting coronavirus.vic.gov.au.

From 11:59pm on Sunday 6 December 2020 travellers from South Australia will no longer be required to carry a permit to enter Victoria.

Find out about the restrictions in place during Victoria’s COVIDSafe Summer.

COVIDSafe Plans are required for all Victorian businesses

It is mandatory for every Victorian business to have a COVIDSafe Plan.

To ensure compliance, random spot checks are underway.

Your COVIDSafe Plan must demonstrate:

  • your actions to help prevent the introduction of coronavirus (COVID-19) to your workplace
  • the level of face mask or personal protective equipment (PPE) required for your workforce
  • how you will prepare for, and respond to, a suspected or confirmed case of coronavirus (COVID-19) in your workplace

Businesses must review and update their COVIDSafe Plans routinely, especially when restrictions or public health advice changes. Organisations with multiple worksites must complete a COVIDSafe Plan for each worksite.

You can stay up to date with restrictions and public health advice at coronavirus.vic.gov.au

Latest news
Grey nomads answer the harvest call
Cathy Downie picking blueberries

Retired consultant Cathy Downie has rolled up her sleeves, packed her new campervan and joined the growing band of grey nomads heading south for this year’s Big Victorian Harvest.

After 30 years in an office in Sydney, the 56-year-old recruitment specialist decided to buy a campervan and hit the harvest trail back in March.

As soon as she’s finished picking berries in northern NSW, she’ll be making her way south – stopping for Christmas in Wollongong with her family – before making her way across the border.

“I see there’s plenty of work in Victoria and it’s a lot cooler there,” she says.

Cathy is new to harvest work but has been amazed at how easy it is to find and loves the flexibility it offers.

She says it’s ideal for people over 50 who are travelling solo, want to pick up a little bit of extra income, see unique parts of the country and be their own boss.

Along the way she’s discovered hundreds of women over 50 doing the same thing and says the network is incredibly supportive.

She says her earnings are creeping up as she becomes more consistent at the work, but doesn’t find it too hard.

“It’s empowering. You can work at your own pace, take a day off when you want.”

Horticulture business across the state regularly employ older people to work on farms during the harvest, in jobs such as sorting, packing and supervising.

Many retirees and grey nomads combine travel with harvest work, taking advantage of the short-term opportunities to supplement their income or savings.

With thousands of harvest jobs available, there’s work suitable for all ages in the Big Victorian Harvest.

The Working for Victoria job-matching platform, which links employers with jobseekers, is supporting employers and farmers find workers for this season’s harvest.

On Working for Victoria there are now more than 1,000 agriculture jobs listed.

The Victorian Government has also established hotlines to support businesses with seasonal workforce needs and provide jobseekers with extra information and support. 

  • Business Victoria hotline for businesses: 13 22 15
  • Jobs Victoria hotline for job seekers: 1300 208 575.

For more information visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/bigharvest

Agriculture Victoria fire recovery newsletters

The summer edition of the Agriculture Victoria fire recovery newsletters are now available.

These newsletters are printed and mailed to landholders impacted by fire and are not available online.  They contain information on production, land management, animal health and fire recovery support programs. 

If you are interested in receiving the newsletter for either the Upper Murray (Towong/NSW) region or the Alpine (Alpine/Wangaratta) region, please contact Kylie Macreadie, Agriculture Recovery Manager for the North East on 0427 052 352 or kylie.macreadie@agriculture.vic.gov.au

Central Victorian sheep farmer on animal cruelty charges

An absentee producer agisting sheep in the Bendigo region was convicted of animal cruelty charges in the Bendigo Magistrates Court recently.

The producer pleaded guilty to a total of four charges, two of cruelty and two of aggravated cruelty, and was convicted and placed on an 18-month Community Corrections Order and required to complete 200 hours of community work.

Agriculture Victoria Animal Health and Welfare Compliance Manager Daniel Bode said the farmer failed to comply with notices under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986.

“Throughout the period of offending, the sheep continued to suffer and were not being provided with appropriate food or treatment, leaving our officers no alternative but to euthanise several sheep that were suffering,” Mr Bode said.

Between 3 May and 9 May 2019 authorised Agriculture Victoria officers attended the property and found 72 sheep were not provided with proper and sufficient feed.

Of the 72 sheep, nine had recently deceased, eight were seriously disabled and were euthanised.

As a result of the continuing non-compliance, Agriculture Victoria seized the remainder of the animals.

In handing down the sentence the Magistrate said if not for the plea of guilty, a term of imprisonment would have been imposed.

The Magistrate also commented farmers are the backbone of rural Australia, and the accused was giving farmers a bad name in such a shameful manner. His Honour also referred to the conduct as disgraceful.

Mr Bode said apart from the obvious pain and suffering of the animals, animal welfare breaches can jeopardise Victoria’s reputation on international livestock markets, which can affect all producers.

“This is a reminder to all livestock producers that animal cruelty will not be tolerated by the Victorian Government or the community.”

“Also, those producers who farm as absentee owners are reminded that adequate supervision is a requirement particularly during risk times such as summer to ensure animals have proper and sufficient feed, water and shelter.”

Anyone wishing to make a specific complaint in regard to livestock welfare can contact Agriculture Victoria on 136 186 or aw.complaint@agriculture.vic.gov.au

Summer water calculator

Now you can take the guesswork out of your livestock water needs with Agriculture Victoria’s new Summer Water Calculator.

The Summer Water Calculator is a simple, user-friendly water calculator developed to help farmers prepare for dry seasons.

The web-based calculator is accessible on a mobile and assists farmers in estimating their livestock water requirements for summer. Access the calculator from the Agriculture Victoria website at https://go.vic.gov.au/3GOuKl and save the link in your browser for future reference.

Students' creative approach spreads farm safety message
one of the winners

Victorian students have drawn on their creativity to send a clear message about the importance of safety on farms, contributing to a new safety campaign that will be rolled out state-wide.

The winners of KidSafe Victoria’s Farm Safety Creative Competition included a video made by Holy Trinity’s prep students on how to be safe around farm animals.

The competition called on students to come up with their own farm safety designs based on the theme, Reducing Harm on the Farm. Students from Penshurst Primary School, Tarneit P-9 College, Willaura Primary School and Camelot Rise Primary School also won prizes for their outstanding posters and videos.

KidSafe Victoria will use the winning entries in a social media campaign in 2021 to raise awareness of farm safety among parents and carers.

As part of the Victoria Government’s Smarter Safer Farms initiative, KidSafe Victoria received $97,000 for a three-year program to help change attitudes about safety on farms from a young age and prevent deaths and injuries.

The Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC) found that children aged younger than 15 in Victoria’s outer regional areas are four times more likely to die due to injury than children in our major cities.

Data shows that the major causes of hospital presentations and admissions for this age group are associated with transport, such as motorbikes and horses, and falls for the very young.

MUARC recommended addressing this problem through increased education and awareness of known injury hazards such as dams, farm equipment and off-road motorbike use.

Setting Victorian agriculture up for growth and change

The Victorian Government is backing a bold new strategy for Victorian agriculture – helping the industry to grow in the face of constant change so it remains a cornerstone of the state’s economy and delivers better returns for farmers.

At the recent unveiling of the transformational strategy, highlighting the Waverly Pastoral Company in Maffra, which has received an Agricultural Energy Investment Plan grant to install solar technology that will reduce energy and water usage at their dairy farm.

Building on initiatives such as this – which put money back into farmers’ pockets and help tackle climate change – the strategy sets out the government's vision and commitments to drive a strong, innovative and sustainable sector over the next 10 years.

The strategy outlines fourteen commitments under five key themes of Recover, Grow, Modernise, Protect and Promote.

hese include commitments to strengthen local supply chains and manufacturing jobs, export our world class products to more markets more often, increase access to AgTech and research, position Victoria as a leader in low-emissions agriculture, and make agriculture a career path for more Victorians.

The strategy will support Victorian farmers and producers to gain a competitive edge as the sector evolves over the next decade and beyond. It will also provide certainty and leadership to seize opportunities and take on challenges armed with as much knowledge and experience as possible.

The Victorian Government has invested $115 million in the Victorian Budget 2020/21 to develop and deliver the strategy. This includes $30 million to extend the popular Agricultural Energy Investment Plan that supports government partnerships with industry to build a more resilient, energy efficient and internationally competitive agriculture sector, and $50 million to upskill the next generation of farmers.

The strategy’s funding also includes $15 million to access leading AgTech, innovative farming methods and new skills, and $20 million for the Food to Market and Pathways to Export programs, supporting infrastructure and business development projects and dedicated agriculture export resources.

Working hand-in-hand with industry partners and the community will be critical to the successful implementation of this strategy. To read the strategy and have your say, visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/strategy.

New community for energy smart farming

Farmers, tradespeople, service providers and anyone living on the land are invited to get involved in the new Energy Smart Farming Community of Practice.

The Community of Practice provides a great place to find information and chat about energy efficient and renewable energy technologies and practices that improve farm productivity and resilience.

The Community of Practice is a collaborative project between Agriculture Victoria and New South Wales Department of Primary Industries with participation from Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP), Sustainability Victoria and Regional Development Victoria.

Community of Practice Leader, Liz Hamilton, said the new Energy Smart Farming Community brought together farm energy experts including farmers, service providers, advisors, researchers and community advocates to share energy knowledge, research and solutions to help make Australian farming more profitable.

“Energy is crucial for agricultural production with factors such as rising energy costs of gas, diesel and electricity impacting most farmers,” Ms Hamilton said.

“Energy reliability and the financial barriers such as the high up-front cost of investment, concerns about return on investment and uncertainty around appropriate technologies create significant challenges to farmers looking to make the best energy investment decisions.

“Saving energy on farms not only helps farmers to sustain profitable businesses, it can also help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

The Community of Practice is designed so that participants can share and build on the existing knowledge, around practical energy and money saving solutions for farmers by providing access to relevant information, resources and people who can help with energy efficiency and renewable technology.

Key features of the Energy Smart Farming Community include peer-reviewed articles on energy saving initiatives and renewables, farmer case studies, online events, as well as the ability to ask energy-related questions of the community.

This initiative is part of the Victorian Government’s Agriculture Energy Investment Plan, which is supporting producers to improve energy usage on-farm.

For more information, visit extensionaus.com.au/energysmartfarming

Tell us what you think – take our podcast survey
Podcast survey

Are you a podcast listener?

Here at Agriculture Victoria we are interested in getting feedback about your interests and preferences to help us improve our podcasts.

While we know they are a great medium, we are interested in how you listen to them and what you like about them. This will help us improve our approach in the future.

We are seeking your thoughts with this short survey. It won’t take any longer than five minutes and will help us in creating new podcasts. Complete the survey here.

Feeding Cool Cows – become a Partner Farm
Feeding Cool Cows

Do your cows eat less in hot weather? Do hot weather events affect your milk production? Do you want to understand how to reduce the negative effects of hot weather?  If your answer is ‘yes’, then it’s not too late to become a Partner Farm in the Feeding Cool Cows project.

Feeding Cool Cows – a DairyFeedbase project – is working to provide strategies to help dairy farmers reduce the negative impacts of hot weather on milk production and farm profit.

The changing climate is one of the biggest challenges for the Australian dairy industry and the goal of the Feeding Cool Cows program is to support dairy farms to become more resilient and ensure summer feeding strategies are cost-effective.

The project aims to understand how the severity of hot weather affects milk responses to different feed components, and how cow genetics interact with nutrition – using information from farms located all over Australia.

To find out more about Feeding Cool Cows and becoming a Partner Farm go to https://dairyfeedbase.com.au/2020/10/29/fccpartnerfarms/

Applications for the summer program are closing soon. If you’re interested in joining Feeding Cool Cows for this summer or in 2021, contact Josie Garner at josie.garner@agriculture.vic.gov.au

Feeding Cool Cows is a DairyFeedbase project supported by Agriculture Victoria, Dairy Australia and the Gardiner Foundation.

Attention GMID irrigators

Irrigators who received a Farm Irrigation Survey in the mail are urged to complete and return it ASAP.

The data collected will inform an historical record of changes in the use of land and water across the GMID.

Plus...those who return the survey will go in the draw for some mouth-watering Christmas hampers!

Victoria's on-farm Internet of Things trial
IoT round 2

Do you want to invest in digital technology for your farm?

A trial to test Internet of Things (IoT) technology on sheep, dairy, horticulture and cropping farms is underway in Victoria.

As part of the trial, grants of up to $25,000 are available to help farmers in the City of Greater Shepparton invest in IoT technology and get down to the nitty-gritty of works and what doesn’t on their farms. Network connectivity will also be provided to farmers taking part in the trial.

For more information call Agriculture Victoria Industry Technology Coordinator Andy Clark on 0436 804 656 or visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/digitalag

Primary producers bushfire support programs
Help for grape growers outside bushfire zones

The Victorian and Commonwealth Governments are continuing to support the agriculture business recovery from the 2019–20 bushfires, with additional support for both inside and outside the fire-affected areas.

The Smoke Taint Grant provides up to $10,000 for business recovery and growth, improvements to make the business more resilient to future disasters, and marketing activities.

It is available to farmers outside the local government areas that are currently eligible for the Emergency Bushfire Response in Primary Industries Grant and the Small Business Bushfire Support Grant.

For details of the grant and a list of the eligible local government areas, contact Rural Finance on 1800 260 425.

Small Business Bushfire Support Grant (applications extended to 31 January 2021)

The new $10,000 Small Business Bushfire Support Grants are open.

  • it's easy to apply
  • you aren't required to upload any financial documents if you don't have them right now
  • you can apply if your business was indirectly affected by the bushfires.

The grant is available for small businesses and primary producers in East Gippsland, Towong, Alpine, Indigo, Wangaratta, Mansfield and Wellington shires who have experienced significant income loss as a result the 2019–20 bushfires.

Eligible activities include meeting standard business costs, seeking financial advice, adjusting the business to be viable in the changed local context following bushfire and improvements to make the business more resilient to future disasters.

The grants are available to eligible small businesses that have suffered a decline in revenue of 40 per cent or more in a relevant three-month period.

Businesses can apply for this grant in addition to other bushfire grants.

For more information contact Rural Finance 1800 260 425 or www.ruralfinance.com.au.

Find out more at www.vic.gov.au/bushfire-recovery-victoria.

Victorian Bushfires Concessional Loans

Concessional loans of up to $500,000 are available to support small business, primary producers and non-profit organisations impacted by the Victorian bushfires that began on 21 November 2019.

The loans are for restoring and/or replacing damaged assets and/or to meet working capital expenses.

They are available for eligible wine grape growers in Ararat, Alpine, Ballarat, East Gippsland, Glenelg, Golden Plains, Greater Bendigo, Indigo, Mansfield, Moyne, Northern Grampians, Pyrenees, Southern Grampians, Strathbogie, Towong, Wangaratta, Wellington and Wodonga.

For further information contact Rural Finance 1800 260 425 or www.ruralfinance.com.au.

Emergency Bushfire Response in Primary Industries Grants (applications extended to 31 January 2021)

Grants of up to $75,000 to assist primary producers directly affected by the 2019–2020 bushfire with recovery costs. Eligible activities include rebuilding or replacing damaged or destroyed on-farm infrastructure, including fencing and trellises.

Wine grape growers who are located in eligible fire affected local government areas and have had crops affected by smoke taint may be able to claim for costs associated with the salvage, harvest and disposal of the smoke taint affected crops. Where no fire has occurred on the property, evidence of smoke impact, such as smoke taint testing results are required.

Available in eligible fire affected local government areas across Victoria. In the areas of Ararat, Alpine, Ballarat, East Gippsland, Glenelg, Golden Plains, Greater Bendigo, Indigo, Mansfield, Moyne, Northern Grampians, Pyrenees, Southern Grampians, Strathbogie, Towong, Wangaratta, Wellington and Wodonga, and the alpine areas of Falls Creek, Mount Buller, Mount Hotham and Mount Stirling.

For further information contact Rural Finance 1800 260 425 or www.ruralfinance.com.au.

Water and septic tank support for fire-affected areas
Water tank rebates for bushfires affected areas

The Victorian Government is helping regional Victorians who lost critical household water infrastructure in the 2019-20 bushfires with up to $20,000 available to replace rainwater and septic tanks.

Rebates, of up to $15,000 for septic tanks and $3,000 for household rainwater tanks, are available to cover up to half of the costs of the purchase and installation of new primary use tank systems to residents rebuilding homes.

To assist with the installation process, up to $1,500 funding is available for any combination of assessments required to get council approval to install or alter a septic system including condition reports undertaken by a qualified plumber and Land Capability Assessments.

Further funding of up to $500 is available to cover the initial refill of a rainwater tank installed as part of the program.

Rebates of up to $2,500 are also available for minor repairs or reconnections required for undamaged tank systems that comply with current standards.

The program is available to households in Alpine, Towong and East Gippsland shires, not connected to reticulated urban water systems, for the replacement, minor repairs or reconnection of primary use rainwater and septic tanks at their primary place of residence.

Rebates are available for works completed since 21 November 2019 and until 31 May 2023.

To apply for the rebates contact your local Bushfire Recovery Victoria hub or visit melbournewater.com.au/RaSTRprogram.

What's on – upcoming webinars

Details about Agriculture Victoria events can now be found in one spot on our website. Log on to agriculture.vic.gov.au/events to find out what's on.

Save-the-date – BCG trials review day

BCG Trials Review Day – Friday, 19 February 2021 (all day)

BCG Members are invited to get the latest in results and information at the annual BCG Trials Review Day held at the Birchip Leisure Centre on Friday, 21 February.

Hear the latest on relevant agronomic topics and catch up with a network of growers and industry representatives.

The BCG Trials Review Day is a members only event. Lunch and refreshments are included and non-BCG members can purchase memberships prior to, or on the day.

For more information about the BCG Trials Review Day call (03) 5492 2787.

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Contacting Agriculture Victoria

Call 136 186 from anywhere in Australia for the cost of a local call (except for mobiles and public telephones).

If you are deaf, or have a hearing or speech impairment contact the National Relay Service on 133 677 or www.relayservice.gov.au.

All contact points can be found at: agriculture.vic.gov.au/about/contact-us.

Don't forget to check out Agriculture Victoria's social media sites for up-to-date information and news.

 

 

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