Tuesday, 27 March 2012 15:27

Fonterra helps flood-hit suppliers in Oz

Written by 

FONTERRA IS helping flood-affected suppliers in NSW and Victoria, offering interest-free advances and on-farm advice.

Though the flood waters continue to recede, there's still a lot of water in paddocks, the co-op says.

"The good news is the waters are receding. Right now, we are helping flood-affected farmers in the region to recover. We were sorry to see the severity of the damage and want to make sure our farmers get back on their feet as quickly as possible."

Safety has been the co-op's priority during the floods. Staff, their families and farmer suppliers in the affected areas are said to be safe.

Fonterra closed its factory at Wagga Wagga, southwest of Sydney after an evacuation order was issued at the height of the floods on March 6. But the water peaked lower than expected and did not harm the plant, which reopened the next day and is now fully operational.

"During the height of the floods, milk from our farmers in this region was collected and transported to Stanhope for processing. Now all milk is being processed back at Wagga Wagga."

All milk had been collected from suppliers in the affected areas of Wagga Wagga and Northern Victoria, but 30 farmers were hit by the floods, having very wet pastures.

"We have worked closely with Murray Dairy and Dairy Australia on options for relief and support for affected farmers."

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has declared parts of NSW and Victoria as a catastrophe. The declaration covers the NSW Riverina, NSW Central West and northern Victoria, where thousands of people were forced out of their homes by floods.

ICA chief executive Rob Whelan says the declaration required an insurance taskforce to ensure policyholders got the help they might need as quickly.

"There have so far been fewer than 4000 claims, however we expect numbers to increase."

More like this

Winston's crusade

OPINION: A short-term sugar hit. That's what NZ First leader Winston Peters is calling the proposed sale of Fonterra's consumer and associated businesses.

Featured

Elite sheep dogs to go head-to-head at Ashburton A&P Show

A major feature of the Ashburton A&P Show, to be held on October 31 and November 1, will be the annual trans-Tasman Sheep Dog Trial test match, with the best heading dogs from both sides of the Tasman going head-to-head in two teams of four.

Safer Rides initiative boosts farm quad bike safety

According to a new report, the Safer Rides initiative, which offered farmers heavily discounted crush protection devices (CPDs) for quad bikes, has made a significant impact in raising awareness and action around farm vehicle safety.

Editorial: Farewell Jim

OPINION: In the past weeks, much has been said and written about one of New Zealand's greatest prime ministers, James Brendan Bolger, who died just a few months after his 90th birthday.

National

Machinery & Products

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

Microplastics problem

OPINION: Microplastics are turning up just about everywhere in the global food supply, including in fish, cups of tea, and…

Job cuts

OPINION: At a time when dairy prices are at record highs, no one was expecting the world's second largest dairy…

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter