In the central west of New South Wales, paddocks which were bone-dry merely six weeks ago, have now been transformed into acres of lush and healthy pastures.
The drought broke in the region in February, as unforgiving drought conditions that have spanned years in some parts of the country slowly began to ease.
In the small town of Mebul, 50 kilometres from Mudgee, fourth-generation farmers Angus and Leslie Tink were one season away from ending their cattle breeding operations. The drought meant they had to hand-feed their stock for three years.
‘’Αt our age, you just don’t know how you can go, every day, the same thing: 600 shovels of cotton, so many bales of hay. Every cow got a feed whenever they had to be fed. We had $100,000 in the bank and now we're overdrawn’’ said Leslie Tink.
The Tinks had to sell most of their cows for half the usual price but kept their final 250, as Angus sensed a change in the air.
Farms with short harvest seasons, such as cherries, could struggle to attract seasonal workers due to current self-isolation requirements. Source: SBS News/Omar Dehen
‘’We’ve been sowing oats, we’ve been spraying thistles and weeds and rubbish - just a complete turnaround. Back to business again, that’s what it is’’ he said.
However the drought’s squeeze on the cattle industry remains tight. With breeders having de-stocked, selling numbers have dwindled and the price for cattle has soared.
‘’Everyone’s trying to restock. It’ll be six, eight, twelve months before we can even get close to getting back to supply. A lot of our breeders are gone, so I don’t think our cow breeding numbers will get back for years’’ said stock agent Bill Lawson.
Source: AAP
Impact in the wider agricultural sector
The situation becomes more complex as the coronavirus is adding new challenges at the cattle yards. In order for the markets to comply with the social distancing measures, fewer people are allowed entry. ‘’We’ve restricted those to just the buyers, our regular buyers that have come, to try and ensure their safety and the industry’s safety, so it’s impacting greatly’’ Mr Lawson explained.
The cattle industry in not the only one affected by the pandemic. Seafood and pork producers have been hit hardest by the restaurant shutdown and demand for wool as well as cotton is expected to dip due to a downturn in fashion industries.
Meanwhile, there’s been a strong demand for staples such as flour and rice. New South Wales Farmers Association CEO Pete Arkle escribes the current situation for farmers as “a mixed story”
‘’[So our irrigation industries are still under a fair bit of pressure. Our dams are still relatively low, which is likely to mean to lower irrigation allocations later in the year, particularly for crops like rice, irrigated cereals, and potentially dairy’’ he noted.
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