Woolworths help struggling Australian dairy farmers with $5million grants - which are expected to boost 60 suppliers over a three-year period
Woolworths is offering up cash grants to struggling Australian dairy farmers hit hard by drought, bushfires and the Covid-19 downturn.
The $5million scheme will enable farmers in the supermarket's supply chain to receive a handout of up to $100,000 to improve infrastructure and technology on dairy properties.
Applications for the Woolworths Dairy Innovation Fund will open Wednesday, with the generous three-year scheme expected to help up to 60 businesses.
The move comes after Australian supermarkets were blamed for decimating the dairy industry over the past decade by reducing farmer's profitability through a highly publicised $1 a litre milk price war.
Woolworths is offering up cash grants to struggling Australian dairy farmers hit hard by drought, bushfires and the Covid-19 downturn (pictured, Woolworths Roselands)
The $5million scheme will enable farmers in the supermarket's supply chain to receive a handout of up to $100,000 to improve infrastructure and technology on dairy properties
'Our Dairy Innovation Fund will help Australian farmers invest in projects that increase farming efficiency and modernise their operations with new technology,' Woolworths Director of Buying, Paul Harker said.
'Dairy farmers have faced tough conditions in recent years through droughts and bushfire.
'The Dairy Innovation Fund will help farmers invest for the future, while also increasing resilience to withstand these types of challenges.'
In 2018, the supermarket juggernaut introduced a 10 cents a litre levy on its own milk brand.
The announcement was made after a lengthy injury by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission into the milk price wars.
The ACCC determined there was an 'imbalance in bargaining power between dairy processors and farmers'.
But the findings concluded that $1 a litre milk did not have an 'observable direct impact on farm numbers, output or profitability'.
Coles was the first major player to slash the price of it's private label milk to $1 a litre on Australia Day 2011.
Shortly after Woolworths followed suit and the battle continued for several years to the decry of Australian dairy farmers who claimed their profitability was being eroded.
The ACCC inquiry determined there was an 'imbalance in bargaining power between dairy processors and farmers'
Woolworths said the 10 cent levy has now delivered about $60million to 450 dairy farmers since it was introduced.
In years gone by the dairy industry has also lost ground to the growing number of plant-based and non-dairy alternatives like soy and almond milk - which make up just under 10 per cent of the total market share.
With the industry under increasing pressure, chairman of the NSW Dairy Committee Colin Thompson said the new grant scheme will be a godsend for dairy farmers.
'This is a welcome initiative by Woolworths and acknowledges the need for investment in on-farm efficiencies to boost the profitability and long term sustainability of dairy farms, including those in NSW recovering from the impacts drought and bushfires, on top of low farm gate returns in recent years,' he said.
Chairman of Queensland-based Premium Milk, Peter Garratt said: 'We're excited by the opportunity to make farmers' ambitions a reality through the grants offered by the Woolworths Dairy Innovation Fund.
'We believe there are tremendous opportunities to see farms continuing to innovate, investing in technology and capital infrastructure that will drive efficiencies and profitability of our industry into the future.'
Applications for the Woolworths Dairy Innovation Fund will open Wednesday, with the generous three-year scheme expected to help up to 60 businesses (pictured shopper buys milk at Gold Coast Woolworths)