The aim of these conversations is to increase confidence in the agriculture sector and is the final step in the Victorian Government’s $900,000 project to fight back against animal activists’ anti-farming claims.
The Victorian Farmers Federation was allocated $190,000 to employ a project officer, $210,000 for research to examine the “current community sentiment towards agriculture” and $500,000 for a communications campaign promoting Victorian farmers.
While most questions so far deal with the ethics of animal farming, there are also questions about what percentage of produce in the supermarket is Victorian-grown and what happens to fruit and vegetables that are not deemed acceptable to sell in shops.
Agriculture Minister Mary-Anne Thomas said the Open Gate Conversations campaign would encourage discussion about big questions like climate change and sustainability.
“Victorian farmers are innovators and leaders in their fields,” Ms Thomas said. “We know they will jump at this chance to make new connections with the people who buy their products.”
The website explains that Victorian farmers are not “standing still”.
“Through better technology, farm management and regulation they are striving for a future better farmed,” it says.
“Whether your interests are sustainability or animal welfare, Open Gate Conversations will put you in touch with a farmer who can answer your questions.”
While this campaign will go some way to addressing animal activists’ claims, farmers are pushing for more significant penalties for activists who trespass on properties.
The Inquiry into the Impact of Animal Rights Activism handed down recommendations 19 months ago and a new offence is likely to go on the books over the next year.
Most farmers involved in Open Gate Conversations are VFF members, but any farmer can register at www.opengateconversations.org.au/farmer-registration.
QUICK QUESTIONS
Q: When I go into any of the fruit and veg aisles in the supermarket, how much of that stuff is grown in Victoria?
A: It depends what time of the year it is and what products you’re actually talking about. So in August, there’ll be citrus coming from Victoria, there’ll be apples and pears that’ll be from Victoria. Vegetables we do in Victoria year-round and fruit really comes online round about the beginning of November with berries. Into citrus, July, August, September coming from the Sunraysia up in the North.
– VFF President Emma Germano, Mirboo North
Q: Do most calves on your farm grow up to join your herd?
A: No, I target the “vealer” market. At 9-10 months, the calves are “finished” and ready to be killed.
I send them directly to an abattoir in Warragul. “Vealer” is a farming term meaning less than 12 months old. Yearlings are older than that. (Veal is a retail butcher description, unrelated to a vealer on a farm.)
– Farmer Dave Gibb, Mornington Peninsula
Q: What happens to male chicks on a chicken farm?
A: At the breeders at a day old, the male birds are culled, however Australia is in a quick race to ensure we can find a scientific solution to avoid this in the future.
– Farmer Danyel Cucinotta, Werribee South
Q: Why do farmers rear animals and how do you morally justify eating meat?
A: As farmers we enjoy living on the land, rearing our herds and flocks and providing a vital protein source for homes and restaurants in Australia and all over the world. We understand that some people don’t eat meat and that is their choice – our fruit and veg farmers take just as much pride in their work as our livestock farmers do in theirs and we are lucky in Australia that we have great farmers, producing great produce.
– Farmer Steve Harrison, Giffard West
Q: How do farmers react to the vegans’ negativity towards the treatment of animals?
A: That’s always a tough conversation and there’s always going to be a part of the community that is against farming.
It will not matter what I do, they will never be happy. Unless the animals are running free and no one eats meat, they will not be happy. I can’t talk to those people; who I want to talk to are the people who want to understand my industry and the reasons we do things the way we do. For me, animal welfare is one of the number one things that me and my staff worry about every day. It’s everything we do, we have really high standards of training for staff, we have really high standards of maintenance for our pens for our animals, we have high standards of our quality assurance program because at the end of the day, if my animals aren’t healthy, they’re not productive and I’m out of business. I really encourage people that want to understand our industry to ask the tough questions. We’ve got nothing to hide, and we’re proud to be farmers and we want you guys to eat our pork.
– Farmer Tim Kingma, Gunbower
Q: When will we stop using glyphosate completely in Australia?
A: As a producer here in Australia, glyphosate is probably the most critical chemical that we have. I get the concerns about some court cases coming out of American farms, but as a producer here in Australia, glyphosate is probably the most critical chemical that we have. It’s been proven by the AVPMA is it’s safe, it doesn’t give residual effect, it basically goes into the plant, stops the process of photosynthesis, and then plants die.
– Farmer Mick Craig, Harrow
