COMMUNITY BACKING IS EARNED BUT REWARDED

BY DAN GALLIGAN CEO CANEGROWERS

Our presence in the community is never more evident than at harvest time. When we are in the middle of it, we can sometimes lose perspective about just how huge harvest is, when it is viewed from the perspective of our local community. While we may find it hard to believe most people in our communities both regional and metropolitan have little or no knowledge of how our industry works. But they want to know more.

We are not just guessing about this, at CANEGROWERS we know this is true. For the past five years CANEGROWERS has collaborated with the Australian Sugar Milling Council to track what the community thinks and feels about our industry. This “community sentiment” work has been delivered by people independent to the industry via surveys and focus groups in major capital cities and with people from both South East Queensland and across our regions.

In our most recent work we asked how much people knew and what they feel about the industry, whether they believed the industry impacted (positive or negative) with the environment and health, what knowledge people had of the impact of our industry programs and economic importance and finally, what other considerations people would need to work in the industry.

In our most recent work we asked how much people knew and what they feel about the industry, whether they believed the industry impacted (positive or negative) with the environment and health, what knowledge people had of the impact of our industry programs and economic importance and finally, what other considerations people would need to work in the industry.

Not only is this data powerful in itself but when it is combined with the messages from the previous reports we gain important knowledge that can inform our work across the industry. And it is doing just that.

There are a number of clear messages in the responses. For instance, we have learnt the community has a high regard for farmers, we can tell that people see farming sugarcane as different from eating sugar and their relationship between farmers and processors is different to the relationship they might have with food manufacturers and food brands. While some of this sentiment has changed over the years, a really consistent theme is that people in our regional towns – just as much as people from cities – respect farmers, trust farmers but have questions and are unaware about farming practices. Essentially many people are interested but largely ignorant of our industry – regardless of where they live.

While it is a huge task, we clearly need to be persistent in our campaigns to work in and with the community to tell the story of the industry. CANEGROWERS is taking up this challenge. Notably later this month we will again lead an industry presence at the Ekka in Brisbane. This year will be bigger and better than last year. With the assistance of SRA and Sunshine Sugar we are showcasing the industry with the use of Virtual Reality headsets and industry production samples and specifically generated information relevant to the crowd. Our involvement in the Ekka education trail will see thousands of community and school students explore the industry and gain a valuable insight into not only our history but our future.

While it is a very busy time of year across the industry, growers and families or your relatives who may be visiting the EKKA would be welcome to pop in to our stand in the agricultural hall, spend a little time talking to the community or just meeting the staff working there who are proud to represent and speak on behalf of this great industry. 