Logistics in destocking proving a big challenge in Tasmania

As producers across Tasmania grapple with a severe rain deficit, rising costs and other factors are compounding the problem.

King Island cattle. Picture: Supplied

Tasmanian farmers are grappling with a severe rain deficit right across the state, with King Island facing the worst drought in 100 years.

President of Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association, and prime lamb farmer at Pipers Brook, Ian Sauer, said since last spring it had just been “awful”.

“Tasmania had a pretty good winter last year in ‘23. The spring looked like it was going to be OK, and then it was instantly cut off. There was no lead in, no warning … it just went from good to bad within a month,” he told The Australian Ag Podcast.

“It was quite extraordinary.”

Tas Farmer's chief Ian Sauer.

Mr Sauer said that King Island has had only about 50mm of rain since September, and that the logistics of moving stock on both King Island and the Tasmanian mainland is proving a huge issue.

“Across all of mainland Tasmania there’s very little fodder about, and on King Island the main issue is getting stock off the island and fodder on. It’s a really simple equation, but terribly difficult to execute,” he said.

“The local abattoirs can only handle so many sheep, and Tasmania exports a lot of sheep to Melbourne for slaughter on the back of semi-trailers.

“The problem of the last three months is the coordination and logistics of the trailers, where we end up with 70 per cent of the trailers in Melbourne, and 30 per cent back in Tasmania. So even less sheep can go.”

Mr Sauer said rising interest rates, crashing commodity prices, the drought and questions of how to feed their livestock are all compounding to affect producers sentiment.

“(Producers) are feeling down in the dumps. This is really, terribly difficult for many farmers, remembering that many of them on King Island, this is the first drought they’ve had in 100 years, so there are farmers there that have never seen this,” he said.

“There’s not all that many options left.”

‘Over the Fence’ is sponsored by Ram Trucks Australia. You can listen to the full podcast and interview with Ian Sauer on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.