INDUSTRY leaders have come out against recent media reports targeting the agricultural industry, arguing they are taking cherry-picked facts from green groups.

Activists influence in policy making was one of the main reasons, farmers were marching in the nation’s capital earlier this week with concerns that policy makers had stopped listening to the industry when making that impacts farmers.

Xavier Martin

Land clearing has been one of the hot topics in the media in recent weeks, with multiple articles from the ABC giving activists voice while leaving out critical facts. The Sydney Morning Herald joined the chorus this week, highlighting New South Wales as a global deforestation hotspot.

With the SMH story citing NSW Government figures claiming “landowners cleared land equivalent to almost twice the size of the Australian Capital Territory over the five years to 2023”,

NSW Farmers President Xavier Martin has strongly criticised “activists in the NSW Government”. He said the “cherry-picked” numbers had been weaponised to falsely paint farmers as environmental vandals.

“It’s very sad to see these baseless attacks on the farmers that feed and clothe our nation continue, this time from activists within the NSW Government itself,” Mr Martin said.

“The amount of land cleared stated as facts is wrong, alarmist and irresponsible, and it’s clear they are designed to demonise farmers rather than continue a productive conversation on protecting the environment.

“Australian farming practices are world-leading – and we have made significant progress on this issue, but that is being undermined by the people pushing an activist agenda.”

Clearing figures made no reference to the amount of land set aside for conservation, which was roughly four times as large, Mr Martin said. While the NSW Government claimed 420,000ha had been cleared of native vegetation from 2018 to 2022, it miscalculated the environmentally beneficial clearing of invasive native species.

Mr Martin said the NSW Government knew the actual amounts of land cleared were dwarfed by plantings and environmental gains, including on-farm conservation efforts and setting aside of farmers’ land for the environment, but this had been wilfully ignored or distorted.

“The activist strategy of using incorrect deforestation figures may have far-reaching consequences for all Australians,” Mr Martin said.

“This will impact our international markets and undermine the genuine environmental and sustainability credentials of Australian farmers.

“There is clear evidence that partnering with farmers improves conservation outcomes – such as the fact that forest cover in NSW has increased every year since 2007 – but this has been deliberately distorted by those who simply want to sell a message.

“I am deeply disappointed the NSW Government has taken this approach, and I call on NSW Premier Chris Minns to recommit to a constructive dialogue with agriculture.”

Nationals senator calls out green groups

Nationals senator and Shadow Minister for Resources and for Northern Australia, Susan McDonald, struck a similar tone to Mr Martin taking aim at recent ABC articles which drew criticism from farming groups for paying little attention to government data and industry sources that contradicted activist claims about tree clearing and water usage.

Senator McDonald said she had spoken to primary producers appalled at an anti-farming agenda being pushed by activists and the significant coverage given by the national broadcaster.

“Federal Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry figures from last year show that Australia’s forest area increased by 0.75 million hectares from 2016 to 2021, continuing a steady rise since 2008,” she said.

“Cotton Australia has categorically denied 10 allegations made by the ABC regarding farming practices in the Northern Territory.

“Today’s activists have no interest in protecting the environment, they simply use it to push their true aim of ending broadscale agriculture and mining,” she said.

“They’ll protest well-managed and responsible clearing to feed people and to extract critical minerals and energy but they are silent when large numbers of trees are knocked down for wind and solar farms.

“They’ll talk about the amount of land cleared for food and fibre production but they never mention the amount of regrowth, the age of the trees cleared, how much of the clearing was due to woody encroachment onto once open grasslands or how much of the land had previously been cleared.

“Worse, these activists have successfully enlisted journalists and Labor state and federal governments desperate for Greens preferences to push their anti-agriculture causes.

“Governments should be strongly backing Australian farmers, and it is disappointing the ABC seems so eager to side with activists who don’t accept that responsible clearing is necessary to grow food and fibre.

“The Coalition supports well-managed tree clearing and acknowledges the extraordinary efforts made by our primary producers and resources companies to minimise their impacts on the environment.”

Source: NSW Farmers/Senator Susan McDonald