This weekend, I’ll be heading along to the acclaimed Kick Off Ya Boots show at Loxton, by Little Town Productions.
The timing of the show – which celebrates rural life and explores the challenges commonly faced by farming families – couldn’t be more impeccable and I’m sure Kick Off Ya Boots will spark many important conversations about mental health during tough times.
For many parts of the SA, the season is breaking all the wrong records as one of the driest on record.
On top of that, the frosts in mid-September will have put a significant dent in PIRSA’s crop estimates while also causing damage to grape vines which had just started to shoot.
Meanwhile, horticulture producers on the Adelaide Plains are grappling with the exotic Tomato brown rugose fruit virus, with this the first time the disease has been discovered in SA.
On my family farm at Hamley Bridge, the dry season makes this the latest we’ve ever sown and we are well behind seasonal rainfall expectations with a crop desperately looking for follow up waterings.
As primary producers, we pride ourselves on our resilience – something that has been significantly tested this year.
But one thing we must all remember among the myriad of challenges we face is that we are not alone and that help is available to us in many forms.
As cliched as it sounds, the most important asset on your farm is you and for that reason you need to look after yourself, first and foremost.
To that end, the first port of call may be to chat with your family or friends about what you’re going through, or even about something else entirely different if you would prefer to take your mind off the farm.
Connection is so important during tough times and can make all the difference to your mood.
Organisations such as Fat Farmers are a great vehicle in bringing together people with a common interest – farming – to do something off-farm – in this case exercise – that has multiple benefits for all involved.
Another thing I would recommend is having a look at the ifarmwell website.
ifarmwell is a free online tool kit to help farmers cope effectively with life’s challenges and get the most out of every day, regardless of the circumstances they face.
The other thing playing on people’s minds in a season such as this one is finances.
An informed banker is a happy banker, so make sure the lines of communication are well and truly open with your bank manager.
The Rural Financial Counselling Service, operated by Rural Business Support, is another important resource worth keeping in mind.
Beyond the farmgate, remember that PPSA and your state commodity groups including Grain Producers SA, Livestock SA, SA Dairyfarmers’ Association, SA Forest Products’ Association, the Horticulture Coalition of SA and the Wine Grape Council of SA have your back.
PPSA and its commodity group members will keep working closely with PIRSA to monitor conditions and provide advice on what support may be needed for industry going forward.
Our aim in all of this is to bolster resilience and make the recovery from tough years such as this one easier.
Details: ifarmwell website – ifarmwell. com.au; Rural Business Support – ruralbusinesssupport.org.au
This column was written by PPSA Chair Professor Simon Maddocks and originally appeared in the 26 September 2024 edition of Stock Journal.
