Launching the Gippsland Dairy Industry Strategy at the South Gippsland Dairy Expo were Gippsland Dairy Industry Leadership Group chair Matt Gleeson and Gardiner Foundation CEO Allan Cameron.
Photo by
Jeanette Severs
With a flourish, the ribbon was unfurled and the Gippsland Dairy Industry Strategy was launched at the South Gippsland Dairy Expo on September 3.
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The strategy is a blueprint for future investment in Gippsland and is the culmination of months of consultation and input from dairy farmers and post-farm gate industry, and was led by GippsDairy and the Gippsland Dairy Industry Leadership Group (GDILG).
Proponents hope it will grow jobs by attracting investment into new and expanded milk processing and food manufacturing facilities in Gippsland, as well as underpin investment in technology, education and skills development, and transport and other infrastructure.
“This strategy is the first of its kind in Gippsland, a whole-of-industry plan spanning pre- and post-farm gate input,” said GDILG chair and Gippsland dairy farmer, Matt Gleeson.
The strategy aims to foster regional growth and investment, elevate the visibility and voice of the Gippsland dairy sector, and guide planning and decision-making across all levels of government, including local government, about infrastructure investment, resource allocation and regional economic development, for the foreseeable future.
Input was sought from dairy farmers, milk processors, industry and community organisations, catchment management authorities, local government, and relevant state government departments.
“The consultation engaged 166 stakeholders across the region through interviews, workshops and surveys,” Matt told Dairy News Australia in an exclusive interview.
“The strategy outlines the value of the Gippsland dairy industry, which employs more than 6000 people across the region — approximately 2800 of those are on-farm workers and 3600 of them are working in the manufacturing and processing sectors.”
Matt Gleeson, Gippsland Dairy Industry Leadership Group chair and Gippsland dairy farmer, said the Gippsland Dairy Industry Strategy was a whole-of-industry plan with input from dairy farmers and post-farm gate industry.
Photo by
Jeanette Severs
According to the Federal Government’s Jobs and Skills Australia data, the dairy industry directly employs 4.3 per cent of people working in Gippsland, with the agricultural sector the biggest employment provider in Gippsland.
Gippsland’s population is forecast to grow by 18 per cent by 2031, with the largest percentage expected to be within the employment population.
Matt said the dairy sector in Gippsland was a reliable industry for investment.
“Gippsland’s 1028 dairy farms produce 1.9 billion litres of milk annually, and that has been consistent for the past 20 years,” he said.
“The Gippsland region represents roughly 23 per cent of national dairy production.
“The dairy industry in Gippsland has significant regional impact, contributing $4 billion annually to economic growth in the region.
“That type of data supports the argument for increased investment, particularly in infrastructure for regional food processing, that could amplify the economic benefits for regional communities, through the multiplier effect.”
The strategy has set priorities for the next 10 years around the themes of improving people’s access to skills development and supporting career progression; enhancing economic resilience and prosperity at industry, farm, processor and community levels; supporting adoption of innovation and productive technologies and practices, maintaining best-practice environmental management across the industry, and proactively address society’s expectations of the dairy industry as a community partner.
A snapshot of some of the base data underpinning the value of the Gippsland dairy industry, discussed at the launch of the Gippsland Dairy Industry Strategy.
Photo by
Jeanette Severs
“The dairy industry in Gippsland underpins regional prosperity,” Matt said.
“We don’t want this strategy to gather dust. We’ve developed it to be a strategic industry document that can be used to support local government and industry plans to secure investment and build economic resilience in the region.
“If Regional Development Victoria or a Gippsland council sees a federal funding opportunity that they need a shovel-ready document for, this strategy provides a relevant socio-economic framework that can actually lever into that.
“We want this document to be referenced in a council’s work plan or when regional priorities are set by state and federal government departments.
“This document is a good opportunity to make dairy visible to councils and to government, and provides underlying data about income, resources, jobs and population.
“Because of this strategy, we can identify opportunities to do works in a saleyard or to improve traffic access, which also then benefits the community, not just dairy.”
Matt said the value of dairy to Gippsland justified aiming for investment in, for example, new and expanded milk processing and food manufacturing infrastructure.
“Gippsland’s dairy industry annually contributes a $4 billion value to the region and that’s a stable and mature product that gives us the strength to engage with other stakeholders and ensure their values align with ours,” he said.
“Gippsland is six different regions in one, and is a relatively stable supply within a relatively small transport footprint.
“There is a rain-fed opportunity, an irrigation opportunity, there are coastal and inland opportunities.
“That enables the Gippsland dairy industry to balance out its milk supply over its own region — if one or two regions are having a hard time, for example with significant weather challenges, other regions balance that out with increased supply.
“Identifying that type of information in this strategy is beneficial in helping future investment come to the region, or stay in the region.
Gippsland Dairy Industry Leadership Group chair and Gippsland dairy farmer, Matt Gleeson, and GippsDairy executive officer, Karen McLennan, discuss the data underpinning the Gippsland Dairy Industry Strategy, with hard copies of the document nearby.
Photo by
Jeanette Severs
“Because, why shift milk out of the region to process it? It can be value-added to here and it can be branded and marketed that it’s coming from Gippsland.
“I’d like the next bit of dairy infrastructure to be built in Gippsland, instead of Gippsland’s milk moving outside the region. Then the multiplier effect of job security and that income, and money invested, could benefit the region in which we live.
“Having a document that is written like this strategy, that’s not just conversation, it helps to prosecute a greater, bigger story about why investment could be done in an area.”
Matt said the strategy also aligned dairy industry goals with broader community expectations around resource management, emissions mitigation and environmental stewardship.
“Dairy has to meet community expectations, managing our resources and the environment, mitigating our emissions, and meeting government targets,” he said.
“Our Gippsland Dairy Industry Strategy provides a valuable model for how traditional agricultural sectors can maintain their relevance and secure their place in regional industry planning and regional economic development.”
Lead funding for developing the strategy was provided by the Gardiner Dairy Foundation, with support from West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority, Regional Development Victoria and GippsDairy, and other stakeholders.
Allan Cameron, CEO of Gardiner Dairy Foundation, said the organisation had so far provided funding to northern Victoria and Gippsland to develop industry strategies.
He said funding had been earmarked for south-west Victoria, but the drought conditions being experienced across the region had caused the strategic planning process to be placed on hold.
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