Farmer News
1 February, 2026
Farmers welcome bushfire support funding
THE Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) has welcomed last month’s announcement of almost $100 million in additional support to help communities recover from the devastating bushfires.
The funding was announced by the state and federal governments on January 14.
VFF president Brett Hosking said the impacts of the January bushfire crisis on farmers and the local communities was “profound” and this support was sorely need.
“I’ve seen farming communities almost wiped off the map. For these communities there’s no overestimating the help they need,” he said.
“The recent fires have ravaged towns, farms and communities in every corner of Victoria. Many farmers have lost fencing, pastures, infrastructure and livestock, on top of ongoing challenges with drought and rising input costs.”
Mr Hosking said the VFF welcomed the government’s commitment as an initial step in the right direction on the road to what would be a very long recovery.
The VFF made particularly mention of the Primary Producer Recovery Grants (providing up to $75,000 to assist with clean-up, fencing, livestock disposal and reinstating operations).
The group also supported the inclusion of concessional loans up to $250,000 to producers facing significant losses, giving farmers working capital to rebuild.
The recent announcement also included community recovery officers and hubs, along with expanded financial counselling services to help farmers navigate support systems.
As attention slowly turns to the recovery process, Mr Hosking said the priority was to ensure all assistance measures and programs translated into real and fast help on the ground.
“These are important first steps but they must translate quickly into practical, on-farm assistance,” Mr Hoskin said.
“Farmers are facing immediate cash-flow pressures as they rebuild infrastructure, rehabilitate land and care for livestock. We cannot wait months for assistance to flow, it must come now.”
The VFF is urging the government to ensure grant and loan programs are simple, well-resourced and delivered locally so that farmers can focus on recovery, “not red tape.”
In addition to this announcement, and via the VFF’s disaster relief fund, directly impacted farmers can now apply for an initial payment of $1,000 to use for immediate recovery efforts.
More details, eligibility and application information can be accessed via the VFF website.