Struggling dairy farmers could get further help after the federal government flagged extra assistance for producers hit by the milk price crisis.
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce says he'll try for further action to top up the government's dairy assistance package of social security payments and cheap loans.
It could include a better indicator for milk prices.
"If there are further things we can do ... we will certainly consider that as well," the agriculture minister told ABC TV on Tuesday.
Mr Joyce and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull met with Murray Goulburn executives in Canberra on Tuesday seeking answers over the milk giant's decision to retrospectively slash prices.
The move has left around 2500 producers owing an estimated $200 million, with some indebted farmers forced to sell off cows to abattoirs.
Mr Joyce wouldn't delve further into whether he'd push Murray Goulburn to return money back to farmers, because it was a matter under consideration.
He's urged all sides to work together on a solution to the crisis, saying they're reliant on each other to remain strong and profitable.
Labor branded the meeting a failure and complete waste of time, demanding tougher words from the government.
"It's been a big flop and there are no announcements," opposition agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon told ABC radio.
Independent senator Nick Xenophon wants the government to consider a range of assistance measures, including a temporary milk levy, the reinstitution of the school milk program and foreign aid boost via milk powder.
He also plans on drafting changes to the Competition and Consumer Act, saying unfair contract laws don't protect farmers.
"They're actually paying for the privilege of milking their own cows and that is just absurd," Senator Xenophon told reporters in Adelaide.
Murray Goulburn chairman Philip Tracy has dismissed assertions it should have warned suppliers about price forecasts, saying the group stood by each of its public disclosures.
Nevertheless, the agriculture minister remains optimistic about the industry's future, saying the last thing he'd want to happen is a collapse of export capability.
"It would be an extremely bad and sad day for Australia."
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