Farm body takes a blow

THE besieged Victorian Farmers Federation has taken another body blow this week with the leadership of the United Dairyfarmers of Victoria quitting effective immediately.

As with the group of grain grower members seeking to have the VFF board sacked, the UDV said it has also finally had enough with what it describes as the ongoing failure of the VFF to staff and fund their commodity group.

The grain growers launched their plans to vote the board out after it agreed to cash out the Grains Group’s $9.8 million Deed Poll so it could pay out $3.01 million borrow from Credit Suisse and another $1.7 million towards $5.15 million borrowed from Westpac.

UDV president Mark Billing and nine of the 11 other policy councillors walked out the door and the same day announced the establishment of the new lobby group, Dairy Farmers Victoria.

Mr Billing said the rebel group had hoped to negotiate its way to a more equitable share of the almost $1 million raised in dairy levies – much more than the miserly $10,000 it currently receives annually.

However, Cohuna dairy farmer John Keely, a former UDV vice-president and long-term policy council member, said he was surprised by the shock departure and is not convinced it was the best strategy.

Mr Keely says while he totally understands the frustration of the UDV executive, he still believes it is easier to effect change from within, not on the outside looking in.

“I am still trying to get more information about the move, the first we knew of it was when it happened, so yes, it did come out of nowhere,” Mr Keely said.

“But at the same time, I get the frustration of all the commodity groups within the VFF because they’re just not happy with the executive.

“None of this is good for advocacy, but I do believe the VFF has treated the UDV poorly and that it should also have agreed to the second bid for an extraordinary general meeting.

“I think this still has a way to go, and as dairy farmers we need much more detail, so it is very much a case of watch this space.”

Mr Billing claims his group waited for weeks to get VFF leadership to hear their call for a bigger slice of the $950,000 in dairy farmer levies to go to dairy advocacy and for greater co-operation on engaging members.

He said UDV gave VFF “ample opportunity” but felt they weren’t getting anywhere and were only “belting our heads against a brick wall”.

The fledgling Dairy Farmers Victoria currently has fewer than 50 members, but Mr Billing said it already has more than the VFF’s $10,000 in its war chest.

He says DFV is already signing on key influencers across the state’s dairy regions.

“We have been buoyed by the level of industry support we have received over the past weeks as discussions regarding the establishment of DFV,” Mr Billing added.

“More than two-thirds of the issues and concerns raised by dairy farmers are primarily related to the dairying sector, and we need to be able to take up these issues and concerns without being shackled or restrained.”

VFF’s response was to accuse UDV councillors of failing their members, saying the “action by some VFF-UDV councillors has shown the issue of the control of the use of resources has become more important to them than working collaboratively within the VFF to achieve favourable policy outcomes for dairy members”.

The dairy showdown compounds the bid by former senior commodity members to force an EGM to replace VFF president Emma Germano and vice-president Danyel Cucinotta, plus extensive cuts to commodity staff and Ms Germano’s, and the board’s, plans to dramatically restructure commodity groups.

The VFF board has now twice rejected attempts by up to 255 members to call an extraordinary general meeting to oust Ms Germano and Ms Cucinotta.