The Productivity Commission has confirmed just how valuable agriculture is to Australia.

Last week the commission released a paper titled Productivity Growth and Wages – a Forensic Look which laid bare the importance of the sector.

This paper highlighted that while agriculture – combined with mining – accounted for just over 4 per cent of Australia’s workforce and just 5 per cent of total hours worked in the economy, they accounted for approximately 18 per cent of the economy in terms of their value add.

It really goes to show how vital the Wimmera, and indeed the wider Mallee electorate, is to Australia’s prosperity.

REMPLAN statistics indicate Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing account for 5047 jobs in the Wimmera-Southern Mallee, the largest employer in the region – with mining making up for 326.

These industries contribute heavily to the Wimmera-Southern Mallee’s Gross Regional Product estimate of $3.86 billion and annual economic output of $7.823 billion.

The Nationals have always understood this, which is why the former Coalition Government invested $1.7 billion in 2021 alone to create new jobs and prosperity in our regions and help the agriculture industry achieve its goal of reaching $100 billion farm gate output by 2030.

The Albanese Labor Government does not have the same level of appreciation for the agriculture sector, which is the backbone of our country.

Whether it be by railroading farming communities into hosting transmission lines that disrupt prime agricultural land to fuel a reckless rush to renewables, or by slapping Australian growers with a biosecurity levy instead of the importers they are competing against, Labor simply doesn’t support farmers or farming communities.

In the midst of a cost of living crisis, our agriculture sector needs all the support it deserves for what it does for Australia economically.

What is doesn’t need is a Federal Labor Government enacting policies that will only drive up the price of food at the checkout for Australian families.