Farmers at the SJ markets sported their best flannel shirt for Flanno for a Farmer.
Wearing a flannel is just another day for Serpentine-Jarrahdale Food and Farm Alliance (SJFFA) president Alyssa Miller, but for the month of August, her daily outfit means something more.
Ms Miller said farmers and patrons at last Saturday’s farmers’ market were encouraged to wear their best flannel in support of Flanno for a Farmer to raise awareness about the challenges local producers faced.
The initiative’s founder Farm Angels said Australian farmers were facing a mountain of mental, emotional and financial challenges.
“While they continue to feed the nation, battle droughts, bushfires, floods and isolation, many farmers feel undervalued and underappreciated,” Farm Angels said.
Ms Miller said SJFFA was hoping to raise $500 for the initiative.
“The SJFFA is specifically about supporting peri-urban agriculture, our local producers and food security,” she said.
“People that come every week want to know where their food is coming from and they want to support our local farmers.”
She said farmers were doing it tough and the community’s support was essential considering last year’s drought, the anticipation of another dry summer as well as increased regulations.
“It’s a stressful thing,” Ms Miller said.
“You’ve got to see it from the mental and emotional side – it’s 24/7.
“It’s not a 9 to 5 and we’re putting food on our community’s plates.”
According to not-for-profit organisation National Farmers Federation (NFF), there was an urgent need for mental health support in agriculture.
The NFF was part of a coalition who called on the government to invest $50 million across five years to address the crisis.
Coalition chair Dr Tim Driscoll said the statistics were sobering.
“A farmer dies by suicide every 10 days,” he said.
“That’s up to twice the rate of the general working population.”
Mrs Miller said there was a lot of red tape farmers had to overcome and said the government needed to take action.
“Let us get on with growing and producing our healthy soils,” she said.
“Don’t put more barriers for us because we work every day and it’s something that each community needs.”
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