The VFF Cardinia branch will announce its ’Farmer of the Year’ at the annual dinner on 30 August.
The presentation gives the branch the opportunity to recognise producers’ contributions to the sector locally.
With the rise in animal activism – including several incidents locally in the past few years – the chance to recognise good farming practice should be welcomed.
The State Government is also preparing to back solid farm partice with a $900,000 campaign to launch soon to counter misinformation and negative messages from animal activists.
State Agriculture Minister Jaclyn Symes recently said the campaign would help counter a tarnished view of the sector based on a handful of well publicised incidents.
Some $187,000 of the funding was to go to the VFF to help ensure that farmers were “up to speed“ on animal welfare standards.
The funding is timely given exposure of an illegal abattoir at Kooweerup recently.
