FARMERS will be the losers if agriculture is left out of an emissions trading scheme, according to a leading Victorian cattleman.
Producer, lot feeder and branded beef marketer Sandy Maconochie, of Hopkins River Pastoral Company at Dunkeld, said agriculture must be included in the scheme for it to fully participate in a rapidly changing marketplace.
- Have Your Say in the form below
"If agriculture is out of any ETS, farmers aren't going to avoid being hit with all the related costs, all their inputs will increase," Mr Maconochie said.
"But if they have no option of offsetting this through improving their practices, they will just be the end of the chain, picking up the bill for what will end up being a tax on all inputs.
"You will pay for it on your inputs, your customers, such as processors and retailers, will deduct from you, and you can't claim to have reduced any of your own emissions if you are not measuring them."
Mr Maconochie's views are at odds with Australian Lot Feeders Association, of which he is a previous chairman and current board member.
This week, executive director Dougal Gordon said ALFA wanted agriculture left out of the scheme but its sequestration and abatement efforts to be recognised under legislation.
But Mr Maconochie said agriculture "has to be in it, otherwise we have no chance of coming up with ways of working within the system".
His Hopkins River Pastoral Company aims to estimate its carbon emissions and then offset them, within its production cycle, regardless of whether agriculture is included in the scheme.
It also plans to soon launch its trademarked "Carbon Hoofprint" label concept with a leading chef.
