Hello Magical Hay Hero Rotarians!
It has been a while since I’ve provided an all points update to D9510 Clubs on our collective efforts to raise money to buy Fodder to save SA Farmers’ livestock!
I’m blown away by our Network’s response, by donating their hard earned $’s … THANK YOU
• Rotary clubs
• Rotaract clubs
• Inner Wheel clubs (including one from Rome, Italy!)
And beyond our own generous Rotary Network – we’ve had Businesses; Community Groups; Church Groups; Councils; Politicians and MANY members of the public who have also generously Donated - $352,000 in total to date!
Mental Health support has been bandied around by Federal and State Government in the media a lot of late. But I can tell you, of all the farmers we’ve supported and talk to on a daily basis, they clearly state that Rotary’s effort to supply feed for their Sheep and Cows is the BEST form of Mental Health support they can get right now.
Our Social Media feed is filled with heart felt messages of praise for our collective efforts.
Since We Started Delivering Hay on 24 February 2025
• 44 Semi-Trailers have visited around 90 farms to deliver loads of feed (Hay or Sheep Pellets)
• In total, about 850 Tonne of feed delivered, free of charge to farmers – direct to their farm gate! (something unique to Rotary / Farmers Relief Agency)
• The Mid-North and Eyre Peninsula regions have had the most support, being our worst affected areas – Sheep & Cattle farmers.
• We started with a goal of helping 40 farmers – with a fundraising goal of $88,000 – buying hay at $110 per bale. Today with shortening supply and increasing demand, our average buy price sits closer to $200 – 250 a bale!
• 64 Rotary / Rotaract Clubs / Rotary Inner Wheel Clubs have so far donated $152,000 + a further $50,000 from RAWCS and $10,000 from Rotary Down Under! You guys are AMAZING!!!!!
• Our donations have not just come from South Australia. Rotary Clubs; Private and Business donations have arrived from EVERY state of Australia. Rtn Bob Cooper early on did an ABC radio interview that brought in $8,000 of private donations within 6 hours.
• As of today, we have raised $358,000 – and have just increased our fundraising goal to $1,000,000
• WHY? … When we started, 5 groups were planning to bring Hay in to S.A. farmers. Today, only Rotary and one other remains, with a third still considering their future due to the difficulty in sourcing feed and prices.
• We now have 650 Farmers who have registered for help!
John and Abbie from Kimba (northern Eyre Peninsula) were one of our early farms supported. They’re doing everything right to try and keep their family farm running until the rain comes. A delightful couple who bent over backwards to work with and support Rotary as we helped them.
THE PAST
Check out the base of our project’s web page which includes all of our deliveries to date:-
https://rotaryadelaidecentral.org.au/projects/save-sa-farmers-livestock-giant-hay-bales-appeal
We’ve had some lovely stories of hope from farmers. Sheer gratitude that we’re all doing what we’re doing! Our Facebook discussions are filled with Thank You messages from generational farming families effusive with praise not only for the quality of the feed we’re delivering to them, but the fact that we take the time to chat with them, and care for their wellbeing.
HAPPY SAD STORY : One of our truckies arrived on a farm in the mid North early one arvo – greeted by a farmer’s wife. Her husband had the day before been sent to hospital, about to commit suicide. He was saved fortunately – but she was left to run the farm by herself. She didn’t know how to drive their tractor and emotionally, she was in a bad way. Our delivery team spent about seven hours with her. They unloaded all of her hay delivery into her shed, rolled out some feed for her hungry animals, then sat down and had a cuppa while helping her plan how to go on. As they drove out the gate after sunset there were tears of relief flowing down her face.
We know directly of 2 Suicides our efforts have prevented. There are quite likely more.
FUNNY STORY : One 74 Year Old Farmer promised us he’d take some lovely photos of his truck load of feed arriving. It didn’t happen! Our truck pulled down the driveway; the sheep smelt our sweet hay coming from afar and stampeded; the farmer was trampled! When he stood up; dusted himself off and stopped laughing – he admitted there was no way he could get a photo! (yes the farmer survived!); sheep VERY happy … but boy it was a bugger to unload that truck!
PIRSA (SA Govt – Dept Primary Industries & Regions) at grassroots level have been lovely to work with. But the process of negotiating and finalising Transport contracts with them has been incredibly bureaucratic, drawn out and shrouded in red tape. For about 4 weeks recently, NO support groups were able to bring Hay into South Australia!
To the amazing Credit of our Partner ‘Farmers Relief Agency’ headed by Geelong based Rotarian Michael O’Keeffe (I’ve never met a man with so much patience!) – he soldiered on. In fact, much of the data presented to SA Parliament to obtain the recent increase in Drought Funding came from Farmers Relief Agency, because PIRSA themselves did not have the info!! The delays unfortunately cost us the ability to lock in 1,000 bales of hay located in Tasmania. They got snapped up by Queensland / NSW Governments for the Flood regions.
Sourcing clean, high quality, nutrient and protein rich feed for our farmers has been a logistical nightmare for Michael and the FRA team. But he keeps pulling rabbits out the hat.
ONE MONTH ago, we had about 250 farmers registered for assistance. Today that sits around 650 … mainly due to PIRSA handing over to us registrations from other Hay Providers who have pulled out of South Australia.
NOW
We are just receiving PIRSA BioSecurity assessment and sign-off of a further 250 round hay bales in Western Australia – each weighing 700kg (a total of 175 Tonne). Our aim is to have these bales come into Murray Bridge on Saturday 14 June.
We are also working through PIRSA BioSecurity assessment and sign-off of a further 200 round hay bales in Bendigo, Victoria – each weighing 600kg (a total of 120 Tonne). Our aim is to truck these to farms around Eyre Peninsula and the mid-North region.
We’re negotiating a further batch of 120 Tonne of Sheep Pellet high nutrient feed from Milne Mills in Western Australia to bring across the Nullabor. Actually … 40 Tonne have just arrived in Ceduna TODAY.
We’re investigating additional Western Australian AND Northern Territory based hay supplies as a follow on. (yes! Northern Territory)
Today, we have about 550 registrations from farmers on our books still to help. A massive job ahead. Hence our need to increase our Project Budget to $1,000,000.
THE FUTURE
We need your members’ help!
Attached is a list of South Australia’s TOP 100 companies. We would like to contact every one of them personally. Does any member within YOUR Club, know anyone with decision making powers within any of these companies? Can your member(s) initiate a warm lead introduction for us to request financial assistance? Please reach out to me directly on 0410 523 106 with any offers of assistance, or please do pass on my details to someone pertinent.
Just last week, Rtn Bob Cooper (RC Burnside); PDG Wendy Gaborit (RC St Peters) and I visited MGA Whittles Insurance (Director Rtn John George OAM – RC St Peters) to collect a $50,000 Cheque from the MGA Whittles Community Foundation. Amazingly fantastic Corporate Citizenship from them – without the need for us to write a 20 Page Grant Fund Application. They were in a position to help FAST … and within 1 week, their donation is assisting us to secure the next 120 tonne of Sheep Pellets from W.A.
SA RAIN
We know over the Kings Birthday long weekend that quite a bit of the State received some much needed rain. But to grow a new supply of local Hay will take about 4 Months! The rain is not an overnight cure – but definitely gives HOPE.
We need plenty of follow up rain to get a healthy crop growing.
Hence, for at least the next 4 to 6 months we will need to continue to work flat out delivering fodder, particularly in the mid-North regions, many of whom are still not getting sufficient rain. We’re still working with a lot of unknowns and we’re in contact with our registered farmers to chart their plight moving forward.
ROTARY IN THE COMMUNITY
Sleep soundly tonight with a smile, knowing that YOU and your Club members are directly helping SA Farming Families to survive. Rotary and Farmers Relief Agency are responsive and getting the job done to the best of our ability. And we’re committed to continuing the fight to keep our farms OPEN.
Educating the public about what our Supermarket Shelves will look like over the next 3 or 4 years is critical. Not only will we see meat shortages if farmers continue to destock, but prices will skyrocket, Dairy products aren’t immune – they will either run out or prices will go through the roof. The combination of floods in the east and our drought being the perfect storm to completely disrupt Australia’s food bowl producers. It may take over a decade to recover – if we can keep farmers from walking off their land.
Sorry to finish on a bit of a downer – but this is the a well known reality within the Farming Industry. Helping the media and public to understand this is amongst our next challenge.
Thank you again … and if you need extra info – visit our website or do reach out to me direct.
Bill Marles
Project Manager – S.A. Drought Relief project
0410 523 106 • Hay@RotaryAdelaideCentral.org.au
www.RotaryAdelaideCentral.org.au