AGRICULTURE

Introduction

South Australia is an agricultural powerhouse. Our world-class farming sector contributed more than $15 billion to the state’s economy in 2023-24, and directly supported around 50,000 full-time equivalent jobs. These figures rise to more than $17 billion and 75,000 jobs when forestry and seafood industries are included.

Agriculture puts South Australia on the world map. In 2023-24 agricultural exports valued at more than $8.5 billion accounted for half the state’s total exports.

Make no mistake: agriculture has been, is, and always will be an absolutely critical industry in South Australia.

However, successive state governments have made it harder for our primary producers to do what they do best: grow some of the highest quality food and fibre in the world. Overly excessive and prohibitive regulation, changes to industrial relations law, water reform in the Murray Darling Basin, delays and deficits in regional road and infrastructure maintenance and development, record high energy and fuel costs, energy shortages, cultural heritage issues, destroying prime agricultural land to install wind farms – these issues and more constitute Labor-Green attacks on our farmers which directly threaten primary production and regional communities in South Australia.

One Nation stands with our farmers as they fight the undeclared war being waged on their sector by Labor and the Greens. One Nation supports the right to farm.

OUR POLICIES

Water access

Access to fresh water is critical for agriculture, and this is always a challenge in Australia’s driest state. One Nation will work to ensure fair and equitable access to fresh water for farmers by:

• restoring balance to the Murray Darling Basin Plan by supporting reinstatement of the 1500 GL cap on buybacks and the socio-economic test for the additional 450 GL to be recovered under the Water Act 2007 ‘water for the environmental special account’;
• supporting measures to increase the notice given to irrigators of water allocations for the coming year;
• opposing the imposition of low-flow bypasses on farm dams in the Mount Lofty Ranges and on the Fleurieu Peninsula;
• allowing farmers to build on-farm dams up to four megalitres capacity;
• supporting greater transparency and accountability in water allocations in prescribed systems which balance the operational and business needs of producers with long-term resource viability;
• removing red tape restrictions affecting farmers’ ability to eradicate pest rabbits and reduce pest kangaroo numbers on their land; and
• simplifying the approvals process for farm infrastructure.

Supporting farmers in land-use conflicts

An important challenge for farmers in relative proximity to Adelaide is urban encroachment. We are already seeing major encroachments of residential developments on some of the best farming land in the state, such as on the Fleurieu Peninsula, market garden areas like Virginia and in the Adelaide Hills.

This can create land-use conflicts, particularly when it comes to normal farming operations involving chemicals, noise and animal movements. There is excessive regulation which can effectively prevent farmers from protecting crops and livestock if their properties are close to residential developments. One Nation considers that farmers must be free to conduct normal farm business operations irrespective of nearby residents moving in seeking a ‘tree change’. Farming areas are industrial areas.

In more regional and remote areas, the issue is about mining. South Australia’s Mining Act 1971 effectively takes away the property rights of farmers when they are faced with an application by a miner to explore or exploit mineral resources located on their land.

One Nation will support farmers in land-use conflicts by:

• preserving prime agricultural and horticultural land from residential and renewable energy developments;
• exploring legislative options to permanently enshrine these preservations in South Australian law;
• revisiting regulations around spray drift and noise levels to ensure normal farming operations are not unduly disrupted by residential developments; and
• move an inquiry into potential changes to the Mining Act 1971 that will give farmers greater property rights.

Improving supply chain and logistics efficiencies

The state government plays a critical role in South Australian agriculture with the provision of freight and transport infrastructure: roads, rail and ports are all vital in getting our world-class produce to domestic and international markets.

In recent years there has been a huge reduction in rail services for South Australia’s $6 billion grains industry: rail networks in the Mallee and on the Eyre Peninsula have been closed, forcing millions of tonnes of grain onto a regional road network that has been sorely neglected and currently facing at least a $400 million backlog in maintenance.

Road freight is also forced to use busy roads in Adelaide because there is no efficient transport route to distribution facilities in the north which bypasses the city. This has created congestion and road safety issues – particularly on the South-Eastern Freeway.

One Nation supports – in principle – the proposed High Productivity Vehicle Network (HPVN) and the Greater Adelaide Freight Bypass (GAFB) projects to address this issue and improve productivity and profitability for farmers and other businesses. Our concern is that the projects are not being progressed quickly enough; we’ll move and support measures that will fast-track it.

One Nation will also work to ensure that regional road and infrastructure planning prioritises efficiencies in agricultural and food supply chains, and will explore measures to revive regional rail services in South Australia to take pressure off our regional road network and improve freight margins for farmers.

Reducing energy and other costs

Farmers and agricultural businesses are some of the biggest energy users. Irrigators on the Murray pay a high price for the electricity which pumps and pressurises their efficient water systems; dairy farmers need a lot of electricity to run milk sheds and keep their milk cool; and packing sheds use large amounts of electricity running their machinery.

Energy and fuel costs are a major agricultural input eating into farmers’ profitability. The obsession of South Australia’s so-called ‘major’ parties with net zero means there will be no energy relief for our farmers, and it continues to threaten valuable prime farmland with being covered in transmission lines, wind turbines and solar panels.

One Nation’s energy policy:

• reduces electricity costs by at least 20%; and
• prohibits wind and solar installations on prime agricultural land.

At the Federal level, One Nation also supports retention of the diesel fuel rebate.

One Nation acknowledges the enormous contribution South Australian farmers make to fighting fires in the state. Farmers are often the first responders to a fire, and many invest large amounts of money in their own firefighting appliances and equipment.

One Nation will exempt eligible commercial farmers from paying the Emergency Services Levy.

At the Federal level, One Nation seeks to exempt insurance payments – including for farm insurance products – from the GST and at the state level will also seek to exempt them from stamp duty.

Restoring live sheep exports

One Nation strongly opposed Labor’s ban on live sheep exports, which will take full effect in 2028. An Australian sheep is more likely to die on an Australian paddock than on an Australian live export carrier. Australian carriers have the highest animal welfare standards of any of the 100 or so other countries involved in the trade.

Closing down live sheep exports does not improve animal welfare; it harms it.

When it’s in a feasible position to so at the Federal level, One Nation will move to reverse Labor’s ban on live sheep exports.

Responsible land stewardship

One Nation understands that farmers are the best stewards of the land because it’s in the best interests of their family and their business. We trust our farmers to care for land in South Australia, and will support them in this effort by:

• supporting research, development and adoption of agricultural systems which improve productivity and water efficiency by enhancing soil conservation and biodiversity;
• working to reduce red and green tape ensuring that farmers have the final say on how their land is managed and developed;
• better resourcing of feral animal pest management on public land adjacent to farming properties.

Biosecurity

South Australia’s relative freedom from a wide range of agricultural pests and diseases is a key advantage for farmers in terms of international trade and operational costs. One Nation has always supported a strong biosecurity and quarantine regime to protect farmers and the environment.

To maintain South Australia’s envied biosecurity status, One Nation will:

• support feral animal control programs run by Primary Industries and Regions SA (PIRSA) and work to ensure these are adequately funded and resourced, but we will ban aerial shooting on the grounds it can be inhumane and instead contract licenced shooters to work on the ground;
• support the Sterile Insect Technology (SIT) facility at Port Augusta with adequate resourcing and funding;
• continue to support and resource efforts to eradicate fruit fly outbreaks in South Australia; and
• maintain 24-hour quarantine stations at Yamba (on the border with Victoria) and Ceduna, and maintain existing operations at the Pinnaroo and Oodla Wirra quarantine stations.

Reviewing mass management audits

Grain farmers, wine grape growers and others who have their own freight vehicles struggle with the cost and frequency of mass management audits. Generally, these vehicles are rarely in use outside of harvest and vintage periods.

One Nation will review mass management audits with a view to reduce frequency and costs.