Victorian Government Places Faith in the Agricultural Systems

The Victorian Government is investing $3.6 million to extend the Mode Shift Incentive Scheme until 30 June 2022, intent on moving more freight on rail and reduce heavy vehicle emissions. Under the scheme, four freight operators will receive incentives to move up to a combined 42,508 containers by rail. This would take the equivalent of 28,000 trucks off country roads every year, reducing truck congestion on suburban roads around the Port of Melbourne.

The Mode Shift Incentive Scheme delivers almost $5 million in benefits to Victoria every year through reduced road maintenance, crashes, congestion and emissions. Freight operators receiving the Mode Shift Incentive Scheme play a crucial role in moving Victorian produce from the farm gate to Australian ports including meat, dairy, grain, hay, fresh fruit, oats, peas, wine and cheese. This would support more than 170 vital jobs across regional Victoria.

Victorian Agriculture

In 2018–19, the gross value of agricultural production in Victoria was $15.9 billion, which was 26 per cent of the total gross value of agricultural production in Australia ($60 billion).

The most important commodities in Victoria based on the gross value of agricultural production were milk ($2.7 billion), followed by cattle and calves ($2.4 billion) and sheep and lambs ($1.9 billion). These commodities together contributed 44 per cent of the total value of agricultural production in the state.

Estimated value of agricultural operations (EVAO) is a measure of the value of production from farms and a measure of their business size. Around 23 per cent of farms in Victoria had an EVAO between $50,000 and $150,000. These farms accounted for only 4 per cent of the total value of agricultural operations in 2018–19. In comparison, 15 per cent of farms in the state had an EVAO of more than $1 million and accounted for an estimated 52 per cent of the total value of agricultural operations in Victoria in 2018–19.