“I can tell you no one wants to pay more in levies to Dairy Australia, and there’s plenty of us who want to see it cut,” Farmer Power vice-president Alex Robertson said.
The call comes as members of the Dairy Levy Poll Advisory Committee prepare to make their recommendations to Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce at the end of this week on whether a poll should be conducted next year and what levy options should be presented to dairy farmers for a vote.
Even if the committee decides not to go ahead with a poll, dairy farmers themselves could call for a vote if they gain the support of levy payers who represent at least 15 per cent of production. Such a scenario is possible with as few as 80 of Australia’s largest dairy-farmer levy payers.
Currently Dairy Australia collects 0.352 cents on every litre of milk farmers produce, equating to about $3520 collected from a one-million-litre farm.
Former United Dairyfarmers of Victoria deputy president Ron Paynter, who also chaired farmer consultative meetings during the 2012 dairy poll, said the option of maintaining the status quo should be included in every levy poll.
In 2012, many dairy farmers were frustrated they were not given the choice of the status quo, with just three options on the ballot papers — no levy, a 10 per cent or 15 per cent increase.
Mr Paynter said, no matter how much he agreed with the need for an R&D levy, now was not the time to be discussing levy increases given the recent slump in milk prices.
“I think it would be a fair jump at this point to be saying we need more (DA) levies,” Mr Paynter said.
United Dairyfarmers of Victoria president Adam Jenkins said his policy council had not discussed the dairy levy poll.
The Dairy Levy Poll Advisory Committee is chaired by John Lawrenson and includes Australian Dairy Farmers interim president David Basham, Australian Dairy Products Association president Robert Poole and Dairy Australia representatives.
Source: Weekly Times
