Muslim Aid Australia supports SA farmers with hay drop
With SA posting record low rainfall this year, the northeast pastoral has been one of the hardest hit areas. But Muslim Aid Australia and Rural Aid are spreading some Christmas cheer.
SA Business
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Drought-hit farmers received an early Christmas present yesterday through one of the biggest hay drops in South Australia’s history.
A convoy of road trains and semi-trailers transported 600 hay bales from the Two Wells area to Peterborough Rodeo Grounds. The bales will help about 60 farming families in the region.
With SA posting record low rainfall this year, the northeast pastoral area has been one of the hardest hit. One of the hay recipients, Stephen McKeough, said he hadn’t received any meaningful rain for the past two years.
“I had one pretty good fall (25mm) in June, but unfortunately there wasn’t any follow-up rain,” he said.
“The ground is so dry that the rain just soaked up in no time at all.”
Mr McKeough said he was down to about a quarter of his normal sheep numbers, due to the drought.
Elders stock agent for the region, Tim Taplin, said most farmers would be down to about 20 per cent of their normal stock numbers.
“If there’s no rain over the summer, coming into February some farmers will be looking at selling all their stock for the first time in their farms’ history,” he said.
“A major issue up here is water – dams are emptying and underground water is getting less and less.”
The hay donation to Peterborough, worth more than $60,000, was organised by Muslim Aid Australia, which operates in about 40 countries.
MAA strategic development manager Shazil Rehman said the organisation had been operating in Australia for the past five years.
“In the past two years we’ve been heavily involved with helping alleviate the suffering of Australian farmers,” he said.
Until now, the organisation’s drought work had focused on the eastern states, but after being approached by the Helping SA Farmers group, the MAA happily stepped in to help with the hay drop. Meanwhile, 12,500 farmers from across Australia, including SA, also received an early Christmas present from Rural Aid during the week with the organisation sending out gift cards worth up to $500.
Rural Aid national business development manager Wayne Thomson said the number of farmers seeking assistance was overwhelming.
“We used to get 100 farmers contact us in a month, but now it’s 100 a day,” he said.
“Farmers have had to reduce their stock numbers and then handfeed the stock they have left, which for many is their breeding stock.
“Some farmers have de-stocked completely, so have no income coming in. It is not surprising that they are contacting us for fodder and financial assistance.”
To contribute to the projects visit maainternational.org.au or ruralaid.org.au
