The dust kicked up at the Bairnsdale Aerodrome last Thursday as 14 trucks loaded with 520 hay bales arrived in convoy, their loads destined for East Gippsland farms to feed hungry stock.
The source of the fodder was grass cut from roadsides in more western parts of Gippsland where grass is growing more readily than in the drought affected regions of East Gippsland.
“This is a fantastic initiative instigated by Fulton Hogan and Regional Road Victoria (RRV), partnered with a number of businesses and industry across Gippsland to not only cut hay on our road reserves and that of Engie, but then also bale and transport it here and then to provide that fodder for farmers in the East Gippsland community,” RRV regional director (Eastern), Sara Rhodes-Ward, said.
“Fulton Hogan is a partner with RRV, we look after the roads in the whole of Gippsland. It’s great to be able to help, to cut the grass where it is more plentiful, cut the fodder and to bring it up here to where the farmers are in need,” Fulton Hogan general manager infrastructure services, southern region, Peter Curl, said.
“It’s a great Christmas present and it’s great to be able to be involved. Fulton Hogan, and all the subcontract partners, we’re all very happy to be here with RRV.”
This is the second hay drive utilising grass cut from roadsides to feed hungry stock.
“The first hay drive was last year, with approximately 300 bales of hay,” Ms RhodesWard said.
“This year we decided we’d try for bigger and better. We’ve had a lot of enquiries after the first hay drive from other businesses who were interested in participating, so this year we set the target of 500 bales, and 520 bales have been successfully delivered here today, which is a fantastic achievement.”
The fodder has been cut from two locations, largely from the roadside along the Strzelecki Highway and then Engie had some land that they’d made available also.
Not just any roadside grass goes into the farm-bound bales.
“We do partnership work with the Victorian Farmers Federation and we have departmental collegues as well. They come and have a conversation about the quality of the fodder,” Ms Rhodes-Ward said.
“There are some areas where we assess, certainly along some of the main arterial roadways, that might not be suitable, perhaps too much weed or too much waste and rubbish because of the thoroughfare that it is.
“The last thing we want to do is be transporting substandard feed to the region. We work very hard to make sure the fodder we bring today is good quality fodder for the farmers in need.”
Ms Rhodes-Ward said RRV would struggle to undertake the fodder project on its own.
“There is no doubt in my mind that this is the success that it is because of Fulton Hogan as a really generous partner and their capacity to pull other industry partners in is far beyond what we could achieve by ourselves,” she said.
“It is a testament to their commitment to the work that they do in Gippsland, recognising that their interest and focus is beyond the roadside and it is into the community. This is a real demonstration of that.”
Ms Rhodes-Ward also acknowledged the significant contribution the Heyfield Lions Club has made to the project.
“We’re very good at managing the roadsides and particularly cutting grass, and we’ve brought people in to help us bale, but being able to have the reach out into the farming community, an understanding of who is the most in need, is something that we have left to the Lions club,” she said.
“They have the connections, they have the experience, they have the network, the history of which farming families are doing it toughest, so we’ve sought guidance from them and asked them to undertake that activity on our behalf.
“I can’t imagine that would be an easy task to undertake, and I am thrilled they’ve been able to partner with us.”
Ray Akers is the coordinator of the Heyfield Lions Supporting Gippsland Farmers. He has been busy travelling around East Gippsland farms, identifying those who need assistance during the region’s drought.
For this convoy of donated bales he has been travelling for six to eight weeks, touching base with farmers and encouraging those in need to register to receive the donated feed.
“The trucks today brought in 528 bales of hay with 53 farmers, plus a few extra, here,” he said.
“When you get a convoy there is a lot of organisation to get it all to happen. When you organise it load-by-load it’s a bit more personal.
“Engie and Fulton Hogan have been tremendous on this. They’ve organised all the truck and hay and I’ve organised the delivery of it, but with the convoy they need it all in one spot.
“What better time than Christmas to do this. It gives the farmers just that little bit of hope.
“It’s about mental health too. It’s not just about seeing a load of hay come in to feed the stock. That’s the big problem.
“I’ve got another 130 bales coming up before the end of the year, not roadside fodder but donated hay from farmers around Toongabbie.
“That will top up from today’s convoy. Some registered late and I hate to see people miss out.”
Munroe farmer, Owen Turner, was among the farmers collecting hay on Thursday.
“It’s been pretty dry,” he said.
He was collecting 12 bales and was grateful for the feed.
“It helps keep things ticking along,” he said.
Member for Gippsland, Tim Bull, spoke about utilising roadside fodder in parliament six weeks ago.
“It’s great to see that it’s happening,” he said.
“But we’ve touched the tip of the iceberg. There is still provision should this drought continue in coming years to do a lot more, but 520 bales is great. Well done to all.
“It’s something that I think we should look at every summer.
“While this is great, we’ve had a horrible December to date and we are already in dire need of more government support and I would hope that before the end of January the state will have announced significantly more support measures for our farmers.
“I think we need to look at full rate subsidies for our farmers, and possibly rate subsidies for drought affected businesses.
“South Australia has just announced 50 per cent rate subsidies for their farmers, already in excess of what we have on the table here in Victoria.
“But for today’s convoy efforts, well done everyone. Let’s see more in the future for our farmers.”
IMAGE: Coordinator of the Heyfield Lions Supporting Gippsland Farmers, Ray Akers, with appreciative Munroe farmer, Owen Turner, who received 12 bales of hay made from fodder cut from roadsides further west. K1547-181
