Restoration grants offer

achieved by ensuring there is regular maintenance to keep them at an acceptable standard,” she said.

“Maintenance funding keeps going backwards and worryingly, Victorians keep risking their lives on dodgy and dangerous roads.”

VFF transport and infrastructure committee chair Ryan Milgate said that in planning for resilience, the government needed to take into account changes in network usage and increasing demands placed on roads by high-productivity freight vehicles.

“Resilience is not only about the gravel and bitumen, but the planning processes around it too,” he said.

“The standard and condition of roads must be up to the task of carrying the freight vehicles we use to get food and fibre to market.

“That’s why the VFF is advocating for the Victorian government to undertake a state-wide agricultural freight strategy, to better understand where investments need to be targeted.”

Mr Milgate said local government must be better resourced to get on with the job of fixing their road networks.

“We are seeing shires in the north of the state facing repair bills of more than $50 million in the aftermath of the floods,” he said.

“We’ll continue calling on the Victorian and Commonwealth governments to increase the funding available to regional roads asset maintenance.”

Applications for Greening Australia’s landholder grants to positively impact land conservation, soil improvement and land productivity close on Sunday.

The grants, of up to $30,000, are available through the legacy of western Victorian farmers John and Bette Mann and honour their passion for incorporating environmental restoration and conservation into farming practices.

The first round of applications will be awarded by June for projects able to be completed by October 2024. The grants are open to all landholders in Victoria with property used for farming or agriculture.

The landholders must share the principles of Greening Australia’s land and productivity objectives, which are activities that positively impact land conservation, soil improvement or land productivity.

They must also have a whole-of-property plan in place or are willing to implement one and no less than 15 percent of the total property set aside for the aforementioned objectives.

Application forms can be requested online at greening australia.org.au/mann-land holder-grant

Anew report commissioned by Australian dairy co-operative Norco and National Farmers Federation has found farmers’ mental health is declining across the country.

The National Farmer Wellbeing Report found 30 percent of farmers reported a decline in their mental health during the past few years.

It showed 45 percent of Australian farmers had felt depressed and 64 percent experienced anxiety.

Additionally, 45 percent of Australian farmers reported having thoughts of self-harm or suicide, while 30 percent reported having attempted selfharm or suicide.

The report was based on surveys of more than 1300 Australian farmers, conducted in February.

National Rural Health Alliance studies show the average suicide rate among Australian farmers is about 59 percent higher than the general population. This is equivalent to one farmer taking their own life every 10 days.

National Farmers Federation vice-president David Jochinke of Murra Warra said the data highlighted a sense of shame and stigma felt by many farmers when it came to discussing mental health.

“Farmers are built tough and can certainly endure a lot, but it’s in- credibly important that we work to normalise mental health and give our farmers both permission and a safe space to talk,” he said.

“But to do this effectively, we need to have the right resources and support mechanisms in place to adequately address their needs.

“This is a complex issue that requires a robust and whole of industry approach, and we applaud Norco’s commitment to creating mental health advocates in farming communities, and we support their calls for greater industry participation on this front.”

Mr Jochinke said NFF was calling on all levels of government to urgently assess the resourcing provided to farming communities as their needs were not being met by existing services.

“We need dedicated resourcing to tackle farmers’ mental health support, and that needs to come from each level of government with leadership from the Commonwealth,” he said.

The report showed the top-three factors impacting farmers’ mental health were weather or natural disasters, financial stress and inflation, and cost pressures.

Natural disasters impacted 88 percent of Australian farming operations significantly during the past five years, with an average cost of $1.4 million a farm.

Lifeline on 13 11 14

Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800

Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636

Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467 headspace on 1800 650 890 MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978 In an emergency phone 000.

When asked what was most emotionally taxing about the experience, more than half cited the financial burden, followed by the impact on animals and loss of stock and the physical rebuild and recovery process.

Norco chief executive Michael Hampson said while the research findings were saddening, it was important to be able to understand how pronounced the issue of mental health had become – especially in light of recent natural disasters.

“We saw first-hand the devastating impacts the unprecedented flooding event 12 months ago combined with the ongoing wet weather has on our farmers, many of whom are still rebuilding physically, financially and emotionally,” he said.

“Overlay this with years of heavy drought, bushfires and now rising input costs across all farming sectors and it’s unfortunately the reality that many farmers are doing it tough. The research has solidified an issue that we were concerned existed, however, the breadth and depth of this issue is really quite profound.

Mr Hampson said it was ‘devastating’ that a high proportion of farmers do not feel that what they do is valued.

“To help ensure our farmers feel valued, there’s really no better place to start than by making sure that we, as Australians, choose Aussie farmer products over foreign companies and imported products,” he said.

“But beyond this, we also need to consider ways in which we can actively help address the issue of declining mental health within our farming communities.”

Mr Hampson said when it came to mental health, farmer-to-farmer support was key.

“Farmers in need are most likely to open up to a fellow farmer, or some- one who understands firsthand what they’re experiencing,” he said. Report findings indicated many farmers did not want to ‘burden’ family or friends with their problems or were simply not comfortable discussing them.

For those who experienced mental health challenges, about one in five did not want to seek or receive help, while one in 10 felt too embarrassed to do so.

One in seven farmers also reported difficulty accessing suitable services in their community.

Mr Hampson said the issue was far bigger than farming communities alone.

“It really requires an industry-wide approach to ensure that farmers across the country have access to the support and services they require – because the future of our industry really does rely on it,” he said.