By ANDY WILSON and STEVE KELLY The rising costs of fuel due to the Iran War and threats from that country as late as Sunday 22 March to block the Straight of Hormuz are expected to impact local dry-cropping farmers more than cattle producers. While there has been a greater push to buy cattle through other local markets, such as at Wangaratta last week, Euroa's most recent sale was only four days into the war and not as heavily affected by the current fuel crisis that has now driven transport costs up 20-30 per cent. A local livestock agent said the Euro market on 4 March was 'too soon' to be impacted by the war and instead raised major concerns over the drastic options being faced by farmers needing to sow crops before winter. "I don't think you'll find any major change in meat; because of the drought, there is still demand," said Nutrien Euroa's Russell Mawson. "The first problem fronting farmers now will be getting their crops into the ground. "You're going to have a lot of diesel go into wanting to get $300 a ton for wheat, and on top of that, if you are wanting to get your yield up, consider that the price of urea has gone up as well." Urea prices have been reported in other media to have almost doubled since February from $850 to $1600 per tonne. "It is the cropping industry that will have the problems more than the cattle industry being affected," Mr Mawson said. "The only way the cattle industry will be impacted will be if there's an errant missile elsewhere in the world going closer to us. "The biggest concern is going to be the cropping world - it's a guts ache coming I think, and in everything like this, it puts a lot of pressure back on the old cocky." With canola sowing beginning in the first week of April and most winter crops needing to be in the ground by about the middle of May, Mr Mawson said another issue was basic fuel availability. "When you can't even get (a local fuel supplier) sourcing diesel to deliver to farms, there's your other problem." He also urged farmers to consider the fuel excise return available to them by the close of this financial quarter on 31 March. "You have to plan everything," he said. "You have got to have everything blowing in the right direction." Protecting our food supply The federal government on Thursday established a Fuel Supply Taskforce, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese appointing former CEO of the Australian Energy Regulator Anthea Harris as the coordinator. Mr Albanese said part of the plan was to support state and territory governments to get fuels to their regions where they are in demand, and act as a single convening point for fuel supply and forward planning, "I want to reassure Australians – Australia is well prepared," Mr Albanese said. "Our fuel supply is currently secure – but I want us to be over-prepared. "Anthea Harris is the right person to lead the work across governments ensuring fuel supply remains resilient, and challenges coming from the Middle East are dealt with here in the Australian way – looking after each other and facing problems together." The National Farmers Federation (NFF) had earlier raised concerns about supply issues putting food security and animal welfare at risk. "If farmers can’t access diesel, they can’t harvest crops, plant crops, or move food and fibre to market," NFF president Hamish McIntyre said. "We also have industries like dairy that need fuel to move product every single day.”
