The ACCC has offered protection to whistleblower farmers and grocery supplies if they report price gouging by supermarkets. But for those on the land it’s still easier said than done.
Farmers
Farmers will attack the govt but not their supermarket giant customers
Farmers appear to have no qualms about attacking the government, but the raised fist turns into a cat’s paw when the time comes to criticise their largest customers, the retail giants, writes Matthew da Silva.
New Murray-Darling Plan leaves everyone unhappy
The Murray-Darling Basin Authority today released the draft of the $10 billion Murray-Darling Basin Plan. And it seems neither irrigators nor scientists are happy with the latest inclination of the Plan, writes Amber Jamieson.
Carbon farming: there’s money in that animal poo, no bull
Welcome to the Crikey farmyard, where we examine what carbon farming initiatives are available to different farmers and how they can cash in on this burgeoning industry.
Who’s who in $4.4 trillion foreign farmland spending spree
As controversy bubbles over the latest big local farmland buy-up and what it means for food production, it’s worth looking to see where these foreign raiders are coming from, who’s backing them and how other countries are tightening regulations to stop them.
We need your quad bike mishap stories
The typical story you hear relating to farm injuries is one of doom and gloom when a misfortunate farmer, worker or sometimes a child, has died or suffered serious lifelong injuries as a result of an accident. Thankfully this is not one of those stories, writes Tony Lower.
Farmers on Twitter: hashtags over harvesters
They might be more familiar with harvesters than hashtags, but a growing community of Australian farmers are embracing Twitter as a tool to communicate, particularly in light of the recent floods, explains Amber Jamieson.
Murray Murmurings: It’s no wonder rural people are angry
It’s not surprising that farmers, business people and community members are scared and angry about the Murray Darling Basin Authority’s plan. Water is everything in these communities, writes Shepparton farmer David Furphy.
Letter from...: Zimbabwe: ongoing illegal evictions of farmers
Farmers with legal rights to their land are being moved on at gunpoint, writes C.M. Jarrett, chairman of the South African Commercial Farmers Alliance, in Zimbabwe.
A drought affected farmer goes to Canberra
Farmer Rob Lennon went to Canberra to talk to Agriculture Minister Tony Burke about how the drought is affecting his farm.
Dear Tony: despite the rain, farmers still need your help
Crikey reader and farmer Rob Lennon pens another open letter to Agriculture Minister Tony Burke: even with the rain, farms and farmers still need urgent assistance.
Farmers and Nats don’t see eye-to-eye on climate change
The ABS has surveyed the views of farm managers on climate change and its effects on their business, finding the impacts from climate change are overwhelmingly seen to be negative — a far cry from the National Party line on climate change, says Possum Comitatus.
Farmer wants an heir
Wannabe farmers with being matched with farming old timers in a new US government program, aimed at staving off the rural exodus and transferring skills to young farmers.
Water for sale up in NSW
Both farmers and environmental experts are coming out against the NSW Government’s decision to auction water licences, writes Kellie Tranter at the ABC.
The soul-destroying lives of boys in the bush
While gender roles have changed considerably, the male ego remains more dependent upon occupation, writes Tanveer Ahmed.This is surely more pronounced in country areas.
Be prepared for surging food costs, cost of living to follow
Australians have been warned to prepare themselves for “some serious inflation” in our cost of living because of surging food costs, writes Glenn Dyer.
Farming the water market for profit, or survival
With dams drying up and the skies remaining disappointingly blue, the national water market is an economic meeting place for farmers, speculators, regulators, and even horders.
Trees falling in the fight over land management laws
Last Sunday, farmers in New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia enacted National Chop Day, on which they began illegally removing trees on their property in defiance of what they claim are unconstitutional laws against land clearing. But like any decent argument, there is more than one side to the story.
