Cawdor dairy farmer Tony Biffin says the 10 cent levy by the supermarkets would be the difference between breaking even and losing money.
Woolworths and Coles announced last week that will raise the price of their three litre house brand milk from $3.00 to $3.30 at all stores nationwide.
“I want the public to know the milk they buy from Coles and Woollies is all supplied by local farmers and buying these brands is helping us directly,” said Mr Biffin, who supplies milk to Coles.
Mr Biffin said the decisions he was making today about hand feeding versus de-stocking would impact his calving program for years to come.
“We are hanging in there. And every little bit helps,’’ he said.
“It’s an expensive time and labour intensive, so it’s time consuming.
[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“There is little else going on for us at the moment,’’ Mr Biffin said.[/social_quote]
His local federal member, Angus Taylor, has also welcomed the supermarkets’ announcements of the 10 cents a litre milk levy to help drought stricken dairy farmers.
Mr Taylor, who electorate of Hume includes large parts of the Macarthur region, urged shoppers to buy up to support local dairy farmers.
“I’ve caught up with farmers and processors around the Wollondilly area recently,’’ he said.
“This direct support from the big retailers is not only going to get them through the drought, it’s going to generate great awareness and support from the public,” Mr Taylor said.
“When your milk goes into the shopping trolley every week, you usually don’t give a thought to where it’s come from and how tough the producers are doing it.
This is a great move by the supermarkets.”
