South Australian farmer Emily took to Facebook recently with a heartfelt plea that resonated far beyond the paddocks of the Mallee. Her message was clear. The drought devastating her region is a natural disaster, and it’s time governments responded like it is one.
For Emily and many others, life in the Mallee has always demanded resilience. But this past year, the weight of ongoing drought has pushed even the toughest families to the brink.
Since mid-2024, farmers across the state have been operating in crisis mode. The rain hasn’t come, the ground is dry, and the support, many say, has fallen short.
Now, Emily is among a growing number of producers calling for the drought to be formally recognised as a natural disaster, triggering the same level of support seen in other emergency events like floods and cyclones.
“We’ve sown 100 percent of our crop into dry earth,” Emily says.
“Every day we head out to the paddock to apply seed, sprays and fertiliser not knowing if there will be a return for our investment. Last year, due to drought and a disastrous frost, we lost 80 percent of our crop. A repeat of that would be catastrophic.”
“The financial risk is staggering. It costs hundreds of thousands of dollars to put a crop in,” she explains.
“We have no choice but to keep going in the hope that the season will turn around.”
While her farm doesn’t currently run livestock, many of her neighbours do, and they’re facing relentless pressure to hand-feed hay and grain.
“It’s physically and mentally draining. Having to ration feed goes against a farmer’s natural instinct to care for their animals.”
There’s also a deep emotional toll.
“It feels like grief. We are grieving the loss of our livelihoods. Farmers are so connected to the land and their livestock that a let-down such as that brought on by drought feels like a personal failure.”
Still, Emily says what hurts the most is the sense of being misunderstood. In her Facebook post, she wrote, “We’ve been accused of whinging by some South Australians outside of our industry… I’ll cop that, all we seem to be doing lately is complaining (or is that begging?).”
“What I want the Government and South Australians to understand is we are complaining because we don’t feel like we’re being listened to. And frankly, we are scared.”
Emily’s post laid out three key support measures she believes would bring immediate relief: short-term low-interest loans (at 2–3 percent), wage subsidies to retain staff, and freight subsidies to help bring fodder in from interstate.
“Governments famously say ‘farmers want a hand-up, not a hand-out’. Well, this is it,” she says.
“We’re not asking for the impossible here, it’s been done in South Australia before, and it’s being offered in other states to farmers who are facing other natural disasters. Where there is a will, there is a way.”
Despite not having had direct conversations with government, Emily has been in close contact with her industry group Grain Producers SA and her state MP.
Her Facebook post was recently tabled at a local drought taskforce meeting involving state and local government representatives.
She’s also been exploring the legal basis for drought to be declared a national emergency under the National Emergency Declaration Act 2020. In her post, she wrote, “A drought is a natural disaster… Governments have proved they are able to fund disaster relief packages. So why not drought?”
“I understand the Act doesn’t preclude drought as a natural disaster,” she explains.
“That would allow state and federal governments to access disaster funding mechanisms already available to primary producers affected by floods and cyclones.”
With grain producers potentially heading into a second failed season, the ripple effects are already being felt beyond the farm gate.
“We’re already one year behind. Many farmers had little or no income in 2024 and have had to borrow more money just to keep going,” Emily says.
“If we face successive droughts, the impact on the economy will be catastrophic. It won’t just be farmers. Chemical retailers, mechanics, shearers, freight companies – they’re all suffering.”
She also warns that consumers will soon feel the impact.
“We’re already seeing record prices for lamb because of reduced supply. That flows straight through to supermarkets and butchers. It contributes to the cost of living crisis.”
Yet despite the pressure, Emily still finds reasons to keep going.
“Socially we are doing our best to stay connected and support each other and I am so grateful to live and work in such an amazing community.”
“We all cope with crisis differently, and my husband and I are doing our best to reach out and support others whenever we have the capacity.”
“We’re helping each other in practical ways – lending machinery, borrowing labour, sharing hay and grain,” she says.
“And when the season is right, we know we can contribute positively to the economy again.”
Her final message is a simple but powerful one. Farmers don’t want pity, but they do need support.
“One thing I would like the general public to know is that farmers are big users of social media,” she says.
“Any messages of support or sharing of our stories goes a long way. It helps us feel seen.”
To read Emily’s Facebook post, click here.
More News
