Exodus of dairy farmers threatens River Murray communities

Murray Bridge (AAP) —A mass exodus of dairy farmers is threatening small communities around the lower reaches of the River Murray in South Australia. In the past few years more than 80 per cent of the industry in Murray Bridge has collapsed, taking with it farm employment, property values and even entire families whose spending supported other local businesses. Low milk prices and drought have left the dairy industry struggling Australia wide, but in the ailing Murray Bridge and Lower Lakes region, where salinity is threatening the water quality, dairy farming is almost untenable. More than 100 of the 120 dairy properties between Mannum and Wellington have either ceased operating or have been sold in the past five years. Kathryn Rothe, project manager for the Mannum to Wellington Local Action Planning group, is one such dairy farmer who is exiting the industry. Ms Rothe and her family will milk their cows for the last time later this week. “Our last milk will be on Wednesday and we have invited all our family here to help us say goodbye … it’s a (grieving) process,” she told AAP. “We had 450 dairy cows and we have slowly reduced that to 58 over the past five years,” she said. … Situated right beside the River Murray, Ms Rothe said she had no choice but to sell her stock, because animals were breaking their legs in the large cracks which had formed as the ground continued to dry. “Because the depth of the river here has dropped almost a meter and a half, it has also affected our ground water.” …

Exodus of Dairy Farmers Threatens River Murray Communities