Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator McKenzie as the Minister for Agriculture. Minister, the Howard government deregulated the dairy industry in the late 1990s. Since then, we have seen Queensland alone go from 1,500 dairy farmers down to approximately 385 and milk production drop from 12 million litres to nine million litres per year, yet at the same time the population has grown from 19 million to 25 million. Deregulation has destroyed a fair farmgate price for milk, with many farms getting less for their milk than the cost of production, and farms are now in the hands of foreign ownership exporting milk to their country. Minister, what does the government have planned to ensure the viability of Australian dairy farms so that they receive a fair price for their milk, allowing them to continue in the industry?

Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you for your question. The dairy industry is experiencing difficulties right across the country, not just in your home state of Queensland. I represent Victoria, and we indeed are a great dairying state as well. That is why our government has taken strong measures to support an industry which underpins so many regional economies around the country. Right now, dairy is our third-largest rural industry, with $4.3 billion farmgate production, with nearly 6,000 dairy farmers, but, as you've said, there has been a decrease in litreage over recent times. Often that is as a result of the drought, particularly in northern Victoria and southern New South Wales where farmers—

Senator Sterle interjecting—

I'm sorry, Senator Sterle; farmers are actually having to destock during the drought—that is actually a reality, and that means there is lower litreage going through the system. That is why, going to the election, we sought to assist the dairy industry by giving $10 million to assist dairy farmers to upgrade or invest in energy-efficient equipment. One of the issues for the viability and profitability of the dairy industry is the increase in input costs. One of those is electricity. A lot of dairy farmers are irrigators. It is a perishable product, so it must maintain refrigeration. High energy costs impact dairy farmers' profitability, because they increase the impost. That's why we're putting money towards reducing their energy costs. We're also providing additional funding to the ACCC to establish a dairy specialist in the unit of agriculture within the ACCC to ensure that we get the competition policy settings right for the dairy industry. We've also committed to implementing a dairy code, which I know particularly the Queensland dairy farming industry is keen to see occur.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Hanson, a supplementary question.

Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I stated, a lot of dairy farms now are in foreign ownership, exporting their milk to other countries. What does the government intend to do to avoid the selling up of dairy farms and the control of the industry by foreign interests?

Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We want to see more dairy farmers exporting milk to a whole lot of foreign countries. Milk underpins so much of our regional communities, our food processing jobs—our yoghurt and our milk powder, not just fresh milk and UHT, go to markets right across the world. We want to increase market access for fabulous, clean, green dairy products produced here in Australia. So I don't see the exporting of our product as a bad thing, and opening of new markets. I think it actually leads to an increase in jobs in regional communities and gives our dairy farmers more options as to where to send their products. And, when you have more options, you can have more choice and therefore you can claim a higher price.

In terms of foreign ownership of dairy farms and agricultural land more broadly, the National Party and indeed the coalition government, when we first came to power many years ago, implemented change to the FIRB arrangements to ensure that we have oversight of foreign ownership of agricultural land.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Hanson, a final supplementary question.

Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You made a comment about dairy farms exporting milk. I understand now that milk is going to be imported from New Zealand. Why is it left up to the supermarkets to collect a levy so that our dairy farmers receive closer to the farmgate value for their milk, rather than regulating the industry again, which worked previously, in the past, to ensure that the farmers get a fair price for their milk?

Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

(—) (): Well, I think that is 101: fighting for farmers, not just dairy farmers but producers right across the country, in all different commodity groups, to get a fair price for their hard work and efforts producing clean, green food. You talk about deregulating and regulating the dairy industry. It was indeed the dairy farmers themselves who took that decision to deregulate the dairy industry across Australia, and we've been working through how that has shaken out over the past couple of decades. Yes, there have been issues, with market power being used by supermarkets in how they purchase product and the reward that they give our farmers. That is why we have committed to the development of a dairy code, in conjunction with dairy farmers, to ensure that they can have more assurance around a fair price for product. My department officials have visited all eight dairy regions, listening to the dairy industry about the development of the code, which will be announced in coming— (Time expired)