TasFarmers urges federal leaders to back agriculture before election

The peak body for Tasmania’s primary producers, TasFarmers has today released its priorities for this year’s Federal Election, calling on the major parties to reconnect with regional and rural communities to understand their challenges better. 

TasFarmers CEO, Nathan Calman, said that as the state's largest farming organisation, their priorities and policies are shaped through consultation with members, who have clearly identified their top concerns: freight equalisation reform, access to irrigation water, improved on-farm connectivity, and reducing the cost of doing business.

We have some very clear messages for the next federal government in this election,” Mr Calman said. 

“As an island state, freight cost is the biggest handbrake on our economy— it affects both the cost of bringing essential goods into Tasmania and the cost of exporting what we produce. Reliable, affordable freight is critical for maintaining our industry’s competitiveness

“Irrigation is another game-changer, transforming the productivity of dry farmland many times. The next Australian government must do everything possible to maximise Tasmania’s agricultural output, especially as our climate changes.

“Fifty years ago, agriculture ran on the smell of diesel. Today, it runs on data connectivity— it powers everything from precision farming to remote monitoring of production. Without it, we’re at risk of left behind.

“To ensure our members are heard, we’ll be writing to all of the candidates that have been preselected for this election, asking them to provide commentary on their parties or their commitment in policy terms. 

“We’ll be asking for them to come back to us within a month of the polling date, and then we’ll be synthesising that information and creating an election scorecard to fully inform members, so they can understand who both understands and has a plan to support their farming business,” said Mr Calman.  

TasFarmers is urging political parties to show that they genuinely understand and value the agricultural industry in Tasmania.

“The industry has faced significant challenges in recent years, grappling with increasing direct and indirect cost pressures while struggling to find opportunities for profitability,” said Mr Calman.

“Proposed policies such as taxing unrealised capital gains in superannuation funds could impose a heavy financial burden on farmers. Additionally, expecting them to fund biosecurity measures at international borders—despite not being the source of the risk, but rather the ones managing it—is both unjust and unsustainable.

“These examples illustrate how the mounting burden of regulation—the so-called ‘red and green tape’—significantly erodes their profitability”.

“We’re putting these priorities forward efficiently and prudently in a way for the government to support this most important industry.