Election 2026: Rural Lobby Groups Challenge Parties on Agriculture Policy
Three farmer lobby groups are applying the blowtorch to political parties on key issues facing the primary sector ahead of the general elections.
Leaders of levy-paying bodies maintain that HWEN - the Primary Sector Climate Action Partnership - is still on track.
They are telling farmers that there's no truth to claims that an alternative option to HWEN's pricing scheme has been in the works for months.
The HWEN preferred option presented to Government would see farmers pay individually by farm, in a scheme that sits outside the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).
The Climate Change Commission has told Government that a pricing system for agriculture must be in place by 2025 and that the country cannot afford a delay.
Farmers prefer a farm-level pricing system - one which gives them control to manage their own farm business and individual emissions profile.
However they remain uncertain about what pathway should be taken to reach a farm-level pricing system: HWEN submissions show of those that expressed a preference, 48.7% prefer moving immediately to farm-level pricing in 2025, while 34.2% support a gradual transition to farm-level from a processor-level system.
The HWEN proposal submitted to government apparently continues to have the unanimous support of all 11 primary sector partners.
But a growing number of farmers are now worried that those tasked with finding a path forward have so far faltered and resigned themselves to conflicted compromises, while departing from their stated aims of enabling sustainable food and fibre production for future generations.
All eyes are now on Cabinet, which will decide whether to accept HWEN's proposal or force agricultur into the ETS.
A lot depends on how much sway the Greens will hold around the Cabinet table.
The Government has to make some decisions. Ministers could make wholesale changes and still call it HWEN.
They will also make a call on whether on-farm sequestration will be counted and whether there will be a fertiliser tax.
Wholesale changes to HWEN's preferred option won't go down well with farmers.
Farmers are already agitating and rumblings are growing louder.
Groundswell has added fuel to the fire by claiming HWEN is toast. If that turns out to be the case, farmers will feel hoodwinked by their leaders. Let's hope common sense prevails and the Government lets the farm-level pricing proposal sail through without any major changes.
