December 23, 2009
Australia farmers still stricken by drought
The drought in the Murray Darling Basin, Southeastern Australia is continuing to hurt farmers.
The Australian Bureau of Agriculture and Resource Economics (ABARE) study reveals that most farmers lost money over the past year. ABARE says farmers in the Murray Darling Basin had a better income in 2007 - 2008, but only compared to the lowest of the previous year.
While the Bureau says profits were generally up from 2006-2007, broad acre irrigation businesses had an average loss of almost A$20,000 (US$17,508) last year, and dairy farms suffered an average of A$8000 (US$7,000) loss.
Irrigated horticulture businesses were the only sector in the black, with an average profit of more than A$7000 (US$6,100). Danny O'Brien from the National Irrigators Council says the report highlights the need for the Murray Darling Basin Plan to get the balance right when setting new water extraction limits. A draft of the Basin plan will be released next year.
