The lucky country

Well, here we are, already on the other side of 2020, quite ready to cross off this whirlwind of a year. Despite all the challenges Aussies faced this year, we have managed to pull together to emerge on the other side of this pandemic and can now start picking up the pieces to put the economy back together.

It has been a wild roller coaster ride for farmers to say the least. Earlier this year, they battled bushfires while already drought stricken, and then the pandemic hit. But widespread rainfall ensued, confidence spiked, government tax incentives landed, record levels of crops were sown and before you know it, farmers are getting back up on their feet.

Recent reports and surveys by multiple sources have shown record levels of spending not seen in decades and a bounce back in confidence following the doom and gloom from the drawn out drought.

According to a recent report by ANZ, farmers are feeling more financially confident in the last five months despite the pandemic, with the average wellbeing score (out of 100) rising from 60.2 to 62.8. In comparison, the national average declined from 60.7 to 56.8.

ABARES is predicting a 76 per cent jump in winter crop production this year following poor yield levels in the past couple of years. This year’s harvest is expected to hit 51.5 million tonnes, second only to 2016-17’s record 56.7 million tonnes.

This great news, combined with generous government tax incentives such as the Instant Asset Write Off and the new Temporary full expensing measure, are prompting farmers to drop the big dollars to invest in their operations like never before. After all, these incredible benefits are likely to never come by again.

Having said that, some farmers are understandably a little bit cynical. While it's true that we can now stop worrying about the pandemic for a bit, the ongoing trade war with China just really isn’t helping anyone. The attention must now shift to strengthening trade deals with other economies to fill the widening gap.

As the country reopens and life resumes some sort of normality, I, like millions of other Aussies, can’t help but count my lucky stars. It will no doubt be a long road to recovery for Australia’s economy, but if there’s one thing for sure, it is that the agriculture industry has got the country’s back. Did you know that over 90 per cent of the food on supermarket shelves is home grown? Now you do.