Alpine Valleys Dairy is a not-for-profit collaborative organisation based in north-east Victoria, dedicated to supporting the region's dairy industry through innovation, education and advocacy.
It exists to make sure farmers' voices are heard and play a central role in shaping the industry's future, running workshops, forums, social events and projects on issues such as climate change, sustainable farming practices and workforce development.
For Murray Dairy, it is one of the most important links we have it might be small in farm numbers but critical to the strength of the wider region.
Traditionally, secretariat support for Alpine Valleys Dairy has been provided by a Murray Dairy/Dairy Australia extension officer based in the region.
Murray Dairy has gone through a change process in how we work with Dairy Australia in the region, and part of that process, we have been looking closely at how to keep supporting the local partnerships and projects that matter most, in a way that can be sustained over the long term.
Murray Dairy is now sponsoring Alpine Valleys Dairy to engage its own secretariat support.
This funding also allows Alpine Valleys Dairy to take on the Regional Network Group function for the North East, a role that has changed shape over the years and had gone into pause through the Murray Dairy/Dairy Australia restructure.
The Regional Network Group has traditionally been the way sub-regions consult with Murray Dairy and other industry stakeholders on research, development and extension needs.
It gives farmers a structured way to raise local issues and opportunities, and a formal channel for evaluation and review of the work being delivered on the ground.
Under this new pilot, Alpine Valleys Dairy ran a structured process to gather feedback and priorities from farmers across the North East.
In return, Murray Dairy collated the feedback and reported back to the group on what support is available, what has been done with that feedback, and how it has been used to advocate for the region with organisations including United Dairyfarmers of Victoria, Dairy Australia and the Gardiner Foundation.
Murray Dairy executive officer Amy Fay said the pilot was about keeping the relationship between Murray Dairy and its sub-regions strong, even as the way the organisation is funded and structured changes.
“Alpine Valleys Dairy plays a critical role for farmers and service providers in the North East, and we want to make sure that role is properly supported,” Ms Fay said.
“This is also about making sure the feedback we get from the ground actually goes somewhere.
“We want farmers to see what we have done with what they have told us, and to know it has been used to advocate for them with the organisations that make funding and policy decisions.”
Murray Dairy is looking to repeat this pilot in the North West and Central regions. If you are a farmer or farmer group interested in leading this work in your area, we would like to hear from you.
For more information, contact Amy Fay at Murray Dairy: amyf@murraydairy.com.au