Mr Fitzgibbon visited Colac on Thursday with state Agriculture Minister Jaala Pulford, following the controversy of Murray Goulburn's recent decision to slash farm-gate milk prices.

He said he met with many angry, frustrated and worried farming families who were concerned about their capacity to service debt, following the milk processor’s shock move and a similar decision by Fonterra to downgrade payments.

“These dairy farmers have had the rules changed on them mid-game and now they’re trying to work out a way forward and how to service those loans to try and maintain control of their family enterprise,” he said.

“I had a met with a fairly large group of dairy farmers on a farm just outside Colac and we had a free and open discussion about the challenges they face. And of course it provided them with an opportunity to vent their frustrations not only with Murray Goulburn but also Fonterra.”

A crisis meeting was also held this week at Terang where hundreds of dairy farmers also vented their anger and concern at the snap farm gate price cuts.

Mr Fitzgibbon said the dairy farmers he met with had no great expectations about any immediate solution he could provide and “sadly” didn’t necessarily expect much of politicians. But he said they were pleased he and the Victorian minister visited the region to hold talks and discuss how the state and federal governments could work together to provide farmers with the assurances they are looking for.

“I believe there are some unique circumstances at play here; not the least being the extraordinary actions of the dairy processors and of course coupled with that is the drought situation,” he said. “I believe it’s an opportunity for the banks to restore some of their reputation by lending a sympathetic ear to these dairy farmers and providing them with the support they need.”