What’s ahead for agriculture in 2022

Farming leaders identify the top priorities for agriculture ahead of next year’s federal election.

Farmers are looking forward to a prosperous year in 2022, but say crucial outcomes for agriculture depend on the result of next year’s federal and Victorian elections.

La Nina conditions have filled dams across eastern Australia, topped up the soil with moisture and ensured healthy feed supplies for livestock, setting farmers up for a bountiful 2022.

But Victorian Farmers Federation president Emma Germano said the effects of global shocks and shortages weren’t going away any time soon, and farmers were bracing for ongoing high input costs and labour shortfalls in the new year.

“Growers are aware the pain is going to continue for a little while longer,” she said.

As Australia’s international borders prepare to reopen to visa holders, she said farmers were hopeful working visa holders would return to fill jobs on Australian farms, but realistically it would take time before people returned in significant numbers.

VFF president Emma Germano. Picture: Nicole Cleary

“The biggest concern is that once the borders open, it’s going to take a while before people are coming here again,” Ms Germano said.

In the meantime, the long-awaited Agriculture Visa, which farmers hope will bring new workers from ASEAN countries, was hanging on the outcome of the federal election, she said.

The visa, which will enter its first trial phase on December 15, is restricted to a small number of approved employers until April.

“The danger is that (the Agriculture Visa) could be repealed in a change of (federal) government,” Ms Germano said.

In the meantime, farmers were “nervous” about ongoing high input costs, and were using their profits from a good year in 2021 for “a little bit of panic buying” of key inputs such as diesel and crop protectants, she said.

In a bid to secure Australia’s supply of crucial agricultural inputs in coming years, Ms Germano said she would be taking an Australian food security policy to both major parties ahead of the upcoming elections.

“Agriculture is starved of inputs and we need some security,” she said.

“We need to ensure that there is local manufacturing to support (us against) supply chain shocks. We’re talking about containers, fertiliser, crop protectants, machinery and parts.”

President of NSW Farmers James Jackson said he had identified five priority areas to take to the federal government ahead of next year’s election.

They included increasing Australia’s agricultural workforce, upgrading road, rail and air infrastructure, planning for buffer zones around solar farms, science-based definitions of animal welfare, and a tax on container imports to fund onshore biosecurity arrangements.