‘We don’t need more drought advice ... we need more rain’

Two failed autumns and a short spring has put one of the nation’s best farming regions into drought – and a new paper shows the extent of the challenge.

The drought facing key production areas across south-eastern Australia deserves just as much attention as fire and floods – but the natural disaster, which creeps across the land rather than suddenly hitting with force, is not seen in the same light.

It’s something Jingellic cattle producer Mary Hoodless wants changed. Ms Hoodless and her husband Peter run about 400 Angus cows across 800ha in the Upper Murray, a NSW region with a usually reliable 800mm rainfall.

But two failed autumns and a short “bob-tail” spring has left the couple and their part-time worker spending 45 hours a week feeding cattle, even though Jingellic is not drought declared.

They have bought canola hay and opened pasture silage pits put down 20 years ago. There are three pits left – and this week, they will open one of those final reserves.

The couple is qualified to judge the responses to a range of natural disasters. In the past 15 years, their land suffered from flood damage in 2010, and was ravaged by the Green Valley fire in 2019-2020 which left them with no fences and no feed.

And now they, along with much of the Upper Murray and the majority of the Greater Hume Shire, are facing a long winter feeding stock, despite 45mm of rain last week.

Peter and Mary Hoodless from Jingellic, NSW. Their farm is not in a drought-declared area but the family's enterprise is spending about 45 hours a week feeding cattle. And this will not stop, despite receiving 45mm of rain, the biggest fall for months after two failed autumns and a short spring.

Ms Hoodless has co-authored a paper Drought on the Ground: The Real Impacts for Greater Hume beef, sheep and wool producers, which she said outlined the escalating on-ground challenges faced by producers across Holbrook, Jingellic, and surrounding districts.

“Over the 2023-24 and 2024-25 financial years, the region has experienced severe rainfall

deficits of 40-60 per cent,” Ms Hoodless said.

“Despite their resilience and forward planning, producers are now reaching a tipping point, with serious implications for farm income, animal welfare, mental health, and regional supply chains.

“There is a clear call for action — most urgently, the reinstatement of fodder and freight subsidies to support farm viability and recovery.”

Subsidies would also recognise that agriculture was important to Australia, she said.

“The recent policy shift away from treating drought as a natural disaster has left many producers without practical, timely support at a time of exceptional need,” she said.

While freight subsidies were crucial now, Ms Hoodless said grants, and not low-interest loans that had onerous application processes, were also needed.

Holbrook, NSW, cattle and sheep producer Marg Killalea said they had been forced to buy 280 tonnes of feed for their Angus-Shorthorn cattle and Poll Dorset sheep.

“Given the extreme dry autumn seasonal conditions in 2024, a lacklustre spring again made it two years running paddocks planned for hay production failed,” Ms Killalea said.

Ms Killalea said they expected to be feeding until at least August.

“There is nearly no fodder to purchase in our normal supply footprint – we are competing with Victorian and South Australian farmers to find suitable fodder,” she said.

“Now add to the mix floods in northern NSW, which will exacerbate fodder demand.”

Ms Killalea said there was “wide disbelief” that governments were not helping.

“One must question, how bad does it have to get before there is a government response in the right direction?” she said.

Ms Killalea said their farming operation had spent five times its normal fodder conservation budget so far this year.

“We don’t need more drought advice or training workshops,” she said.

“We need more rain and, while we wait, we need the financial backing of our government to help us get through.”