The stories this week about the effects of the drought have been heartbreaking. Farmers seeking hay bales to feed stock. Farmers selling off their herds. Some farmers have run out of bullets – the gruesome toll of euthanising sheep.
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The Big Dry has made life brutal for our cockies.
This weekend we’re all being asked to dig deep to help the lifeblood of Australia. Hardship stories have prompted people to give hay, food, clothing, money. Millions should be raised to keep our farmers afloat.
If you live in a city, or a town, you may believe that you’re not really affected by the drought. Think again. The images of rural dustbowls may seem removed from your life as you sit down to your weekend lattes, avocado smashes and morning porridge. But the food has to come from somewhere. That “somewhere” is from the land delivering increasingly stark images to our TVs, on our social media feeds, in our papers.
City dwellers have become divorced from their food sources. They seek the cheapest. The most accessible. It is not always local.
In an economic environment of crippling housing prices and fuel costs, the option of buying local is being weighed up against the cheaper cost of food produced overseas.
It’s understandable. Times are tough everywhere. But bear one thing in mind the next time you’re tossing up whether to buy the Australian made oats or the import.
Australian farmers and towns have a symbiotic relationship. When one thrives so does the other. When one falters, so does the other.
Australian farmers and towns have a symbiotic relationship. When one thrives so does the other. When one falters, so does the other. When times are good farmers buy tractors, cars, clothes, treats. They put back into their regions. They bloom. Times are good. Jobs and businesses increase.
When times are like they are now, farmers have to cut back. The towns struggle, jobs go, people leave for the city and don’t come back. One crisis at a time the community dwindles. The community that forged Australian off the back of wheat and wool and cattle. Our towns, our jobs and our food … all are hand in glove.
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Food security is something we should all be concerned about. That the milk for the latte, the avocado for the smash and the oats for our porridge can be sourced from our shores for generations to come.
Droughts jeopardise that ability. Crops may fail, stock may be sold off or die. Lower prices today for products as farmers offload against a dry spring could mean higher shelf prices tomorrow due to shortages. In these tough times – for townies and farmers alike – think about spending a little extra to buy local. Help a farmer. Help yourself.
Juanita Greville is a Fairfax journalist
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