Community
24 July, 2024
Simpson unites
THE wider Simpson community gathered last Thursday to voice their shared objection to tree plantations taking over key farmland in the area.
A petition has been launched which has more than 700 signatures calling for the Federal Government to release the conditions the Foreign Investment Review Board placed on Munich Re (a German Superannuation Company) “in approving the purchase of $200 million” in farm land in south west Victoria.
The community forum last week saw more than 150 people attending, with speakers on the day including Federal Member for Wannon Dan Tehan, accountant Duncan Morris, Dr Anna Carracun and Jamie Vogels.
Forum organiser and petition leader Pappy Hunt has spent much of his life in the Heytesbury area after his parents moved to the settlement.
“This country can not go back to trees,” he said.
“We need to make a change and that’s what this meeting is about.
“You can’t eat a tree, we all know that.”
Mr Morris, a Cobden-based accountant, said more needed to be done to support young people wanting to buy a dairy farm.
He said it was important to look at the reasons behind why people were selling their farms.
“Why are so many dairy farmers exiting the industry? Mr Morris asked.
“If they’re not exiting tree farms don’t get to buy.
“There is really nothing around to help young farmers get a start. I think that’s the real reason we are losing land to trees.
“I think we’ve got to find a solution and an option for young people to get into the industry. One way or another, we’ve got to have something to compete with trees.”
Mr Vogels, who is a dairy farmer and Corangamite Shire councillor, said “everything has it’s place, and this isn’t the place for trees”.
He said the “alarm bells” starting going off about the surge of properties being purchased for tree plantations about 12 months ago.
Mr Vogels questioned what the politicians were thinking when they allowed the $200 million of foreign investment.
He said the impacts on the dairy industry were already been felt.
“The suppliers are already feeling the pinch from the drop of milk supplies,” Mr Vogels said.
“We are the number one dairy shire in the country.
“We’re the most carbon efficient processors in the country of dairy and they want to put us off this land?
Mr Tehan commended the community on attending the forum and said “you’re voting with your feet”.
He said the community should have been consulted when the Foreign Investment Review Board approved the $200 million investment.
Mr Tehan said he was concerned about the potential for a precedence and the situation at Simpson being able to occur again.
“My understanding is unless we say to the current government that this can’t happen again we are going to see overseas superannuation corporations wanting to do the same thing,” he said.
“I don’t think that this is acceptable.
“We have to keep the heart and soul of the country alike.
“We’ve got to make sure we are encouraging our young farmers to come through.”
Mr Tehan said he had a “federal responsibility to act” after being contacted about the situation.
“I want to help you so you’ve got a voice in your future,” he said.
“We’ve got to make sure this doesn’t repeat itself and that’s my grave fear.”
To sign the petition visit https://www.research.net/r/LSDBXTL.
