The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) welcomes today’s announcement by the Victorian and Australian Governments of close to $100 million in additional support to help communities recover from the devastating bushfire impacts.
VFF President Brett Hosking said the impacts of this bushfire crisis on farmers and the local communities is profound and this support is sorely needed.
“I’ve seen farming communities almost wiped off the map. For these communities there’s no overestimating the help they need.”
“The recent fires have ravaged towns, farms and communities in every corner of Victoria. Many farmers have lost fencing, pastures, infrastructure and livestock, on top of ongoing challenges with drought and rising input costs.”
“We welcome the Government’s commitment as an initial step in the right direction on the road to what will be a very long recovery,” Mr Hosking said.
The VFF particularly supports the inclusion of:
- Primary Producer Recovery Grants – providing up to $75,000 to assist with clean-up, fencing, livestock disposal and reinstating operations.
- Concessional Loans – offering up to $250,000 to producers facing significant losses, giving farmers working capital to rebuild.
- Community Recovery Officers and Hubs, and expanded financial counselling services to navigate support systems.
As attention slowly turns to the recovery process, Mr Hosking said the priority was to ensure all assistance measures and programs translate into real and fast help on the ground.
“These are important first steps, but they must translate quickly into practical, on-farm assistance.”
“Farmers are facing immediate cash-flow pressures as they rebuild infrastructure, rehabilitate land and care for livestock. We cannot wait months for assistance to flow, it must come now.”
“We are urging the Government to ensure grant and loan programs are simple, well-resourced and delivered locally, so farmers can focus on recovery, not red tape,” Mr Hosking said.
In addition to this announcement and via the VFF’s Disaster Relief Fund, directly impacted bushfire farmers can now apply for an initial payment of $1,000 to use for immediate recovery efforts.
More details, eligibility and application information can be accessed via the VFF website.