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| Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association | |
|---|---|
| Name | Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association |
| Formation | 1908 |
| Type | Advocacy; Industry association |
| Headquarters | Hobart, Tasmania |
| Leader title | President |
Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association is an Australian peak body formed to represent primary producers across Tasmania, with historical roots in early 20th century rural advocacy and agricultural development. It has engaged with state and federal institutions, sectoral stakeholders and local communities to influence policy, market access and land management across Tasmania, including interaction with notable institutions and events in Australian agrarian history.
The organisation traces origins to rural cooperatives and lobby groups active during the Federation era, contemporaneous with entities such as the Australian Country Party, Royal Agricultural Society of Tasmania, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Tasmanian Parliamentary Library, and the Hobart Agricultural Show. Early leadership included figures connected to the Department of Agriculture (Tasmania), the University of Tasmania, and prominent landowners aligned with the Tasmanian Legislative Council and the Australian Senate. During the interwar period the association engaged with national debates over tariffs and trade alongside the Australian Workers' Union, National Farmers Federation, and stakeholders in the Wheat Board (Australia). Post-World War II reconstruction saw collaboration with the Department of Primary Industries and Water (Tasmania), the Meat and Livestock Australia era, and technical partnerships with the CSIRO and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia agricultural finance programs. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries the association intersected with campaigns around Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, the Franklin Dam dispute, and regulatory reform promoted by the Productivity Commission and state ministries.
The association's governance structure has mirrored other Australian industry bodies such as the National Farmers' Federation and the Victorian Farmers Federation, featuring an executive council, regional committees and periodic congresses akin to the Australian Agricultural Council. Its constitution establishes roles comparable to a president, vice-president, treasurer and district delegates, who have historically liaised with the Tasmanian Premier, the Attorney-General of Tasmania on legal frameworks, and members of the House of Representatives (Australia) for federal matters. Governance reforms over time reflected recommendations by institutions like the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission and inquiries similar to those conducted by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission regarding industry conduct. The association has maintained memoranda of understanding with peak bodies such as the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia for rural health liaison and with commodity councils reminiscent of the Grains Research and Development Corporation.
Membership has encompassed a cross-section of producers from smallholders to corporate enterprises, including sheep and cattle graziers, dairy farmers, horticulturists and plantation operators, reflecting sectors represented in bodies like Dairy Australia, Meat and Livestock Australia, and the Australian Pork Limited framework. Regional membership branches have operated in localities including Launceston, Tasmania, Devonport, Tasmania, Burnie, Tasmania, and rural shires such as Circular Head, Tasmania and Glamorgan–Spring Bay Council. The association has engaged with corporate stakeholders such as export processors tied to the Port of Burnie and commodity brokers interacting with the Australian Securities Exchange for agricultural investment vehicles, while individual members often participated in advisory panels convened by the Institute of Public Affairs or academic partners at the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture.
Advocacy has ranged across land tenure, biosecurity, trade policy, environmental regulation and rural services, aligning or contending with policy positions from the National Farmers' Federation, the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, and state agencies like the Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries and Water. The association has campaigned on issues touching the Emu Bay Railway era logistics, freight costs affecting access to the Bass Strait shipping network, and regulatory responses related to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. It has submitted to parliamentary inquiries such as those overseen by the Parliament of Tasmania and the Joint Standing Committee on Trade and Investment Growth (Australia), and has taken positions during debates over resource development involving stakeholders like Hydro Tasmania and proponents of projects similar to the Marinus Link interconnector.
Services offered have included extension programs, agronomic advice, market intelligence, training and insurance facilitation, often delivered in partnership with institutions such as the University of Tasmania, CSIRO, and local chambers like the Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The association organized field days and technical workshops comparable to events hosted by the Royal Agricultural Society of Tasmania and engaged in collective bargaining or coordination for input supply chains alongside co-operatives modeled after the Australian Meat Industry Employees Union historical cooperatives. It has provided representation at trade missions that mirror delegations to international partners such as New Zealand agribusiness forums and dialogues with agencies like the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia).
The association's activities influenced regional development in Tasmanian local economies, affecting commodity flows through ports like Port of Hobart and Port of Launceston, workforce issues intersecting with migration programs coordinated with agencies similar to the Department of Home Affairs (Australia), and investment climates watched by entities like the Reserve Bank of Australia. Policy outcomes influenced sectors documented by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences and economic modelling used by the Productivity Commission. Its advocacy on land use and water allocation engaged stakeholders including irrigators from the Tamar Valley and forestry interests represented in companies similar to Gunns Limited.
The association has faced criticism from environmental groups aligned with campaigns such as those during the Franklin Dam dispute and from conservation NGOs involved in the Tasmanian Wilderness debates, as well as scrutiny from media outlets comparable to the Hobart Mercury and national coverage in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Controversies have included disputes over native forest harvesting practices analogous to conflicts involving Gunns Limited, positions on pesticide and fertilizer regulation challenged by public health advocates, and tensions with unions such as the Australian Workers' Union over labour conditions and contract farming arrangements. Regulatory inquiries and parliamentary scrutiny similar to reviews by the Tasmanian Integrity Commission have periodically examined lobbying, governance and advocacy tactics used by the association.
Category:Agricultural organisations in Australia Category:Organisations based in Hobart