Farmer amongst the Suits
- LEA
- 2 days ago
- 7 min read
Without the escort, I’d have gotten lost in the corridors of power this week.
Attending the National Farmers Federation (NFF) and Suicide Prevention Australia’s (SPA) breakfast briefing at Parliament House in Canberra was not something I ever envisioned on my radar - and yet there I was. I'd say I was following like a lost sheep, but let's just say that analogy doesn't really ring true if you've spent much time with sheep!
I attended this event with my Lived Experience Australia badge on, advocating for lived and living experience to be at the core of decisions that are about farmers and their mental health. I also attended wearing my (invisible Akubra) farmer hat, having owned and run a beef cattle farm for the last 13 years. I brought my own lived experience as a farmer because my mental health challenges, and those of my family, friends and community are the kind of stories that put faces on the very real and confronting data being presented.
The troubling statistic
Every 10 days a farmer dies by suicide. That’s up to double the rate of the broader working population.
More importantly, that’s family members, friends and loved ones lost.
In any other industry that figure would be noted as a travesty. Investigations, royal commissions or inquiries would be called for to explain the devastation, and a set of recommendations would be placed in front of the stakeholders with some serious impetus around making changes. Yet in Agriculture and Farming, the fact that most people keep going despite all the odds being stacked against them means the lens is not often pointed in their direction.
The lens at this gathering was being presented by Professor Jackie Schirmer, based on the ‘Regional Wellbeing Survey’ data. I have taken part in this survey over the many years it has run, and I found myself nodding, both in recollection and agreement with so many of the key points raised.
Why would ANYONE be a farmer?
There was an audible gasp when the slide above was presented – it certainly made people wonder why anyone would even bother being a farmer, given the additional risks and stressors. The not-so-simple fact for many is that farming is their life, their family, their income, heritage and their home. On top of that, there’s the contribution they make to feeding our country – an important aspect that we can’t overlook – which most take a great deal of pride in. Despite the additional challenges shown here many farmers are managing to maintain good mental health.
We know (and the data confirms) that farmers are consistently having to adapt to more challenges, more often. While natural hazards are the obvious one to many of us, they are not the only challenges. This chart (below) shows the percentage of Australian farms impacted by a range of challenging scenarios.
This data was collected before the Middle East conflict started in early 2026, so with the impacts from that, on top of what was already evident from this data, farmers are dealing with a lot, all the time.
These challenges are something many farmers take in their stride, but the stresses of each of these situations – and the compounding effects of them - mean things can often become more than some people can manage, because farming is not only financial, it is emotional and deeply personal.
Better Mental Health discussions but not enough services
It’s definitely easier these days to have a conversation around mental health and wellbeing. Over the 13 years my family have been farming, I’ve noticed the slow change. For many, though, it is still an uncomfortable subject or just another thing on ‘the list’ that needs to be tackled. Compared to feeding your family, paying your staff or keeping animals alive, taking time – and the money - to address mental health and wellbeing is often not prioritised.
And then for many of us, when we do reach the point of needing to access services, they aren’t readily available. Booking in to see my regular GP takes up to 6 weeks these days (and I am far from remote), and if I don’t maintain regular Psychologist appointments I risk not being able to get in again for six months or more. So, when acute symptoms occur, there is a huge delay before I can access support, and often that’s when things can spiral for me.
The data in the Regional Wellbeing Survey backs this up. The graph below shows the disparity between average Australians, and those in regional areas, with less than 15% of regional farmers saying they have good access to mental health services.
According to a special report commissioned by the NSW Department of Primary Industries 53% of NSW Farmers experienced four or more natural hazards between 2017 and 2023, each with their own different ‘supports’ coming and going each time, and this is no way to support or maintain good mental health. We need services that meet farming community needs all the time building individual and collective knowledge and ability to meet challenges as they are faced.
Some ‘supports’ that ARE available during those intense times can often be less than helpful anyway. Ask a farmer who has applied for a dedicated Farm grant after a severe weather event or natural hazard whether it was something that supported their wellbeing and I can almost guarantee you’ll have people indicating that the process was more stressful than seemed worthwhile. Many of my connections have stated that it was so stressful that they would never apply again.
The steps proposed to urgently address mental health and suicide in agriculture
The joint statement from the Coalition for Mental Health and Wellbeing in Agriculture is a first step to redress the balance of farmers mental health. The statement is requesting government investment of $50m over 5 years to provide the kind of support needed to maintain the health of the industry that feeds, clothes and provides for us all.
The key points in the Joint Statement are these:
that all of us get involved (farmers, government, service providers and community) and work together to create the solutions.
that we create and develop services driven by what farmers need and understanding the unique challenges that come with farming.
Farmers and farming communities must be at the forefront of these discussions (as we like to say ‘Lived experience as the first thought, not the afterthought’) – we have all been told for too long time to fit into the mould designed for (and sometimes by) people who live in higher population areas, and so far that system hasn’t done what’s needed.
The evidence base is here now. It shows what farmers and rural communities are saying, and it’s time to use this – and the lived experience voices that it supports – to create the solutions.
Let it be a wholistic approach, coordinated and collaborative, to address prevention, early intervention, treatment and ongoing supports.
This certainly goes a lot further than simply relying on farmers to be resilient.
Resilience is a dirty word
One of my favourite lines from Professor Schirmer’s presentation was this
“Don’t tell farmers to ‘be more resilient’”
We are tired of what many now refer to as ‘the R word’ – a word that has become like a trope along the lines of ‘we’re not going to change anything, so just get used to it’.
It’s time to change the kind of statistics that would horrify most other industry leaders – and I am so pleased to know that our Agriculture industry leaders ARE horrified and are not waiting. They are taking positive steps to see this changed.
I was also incredibly pleased to see the large number of politicians – from both sides - who attended this gathering. In a schedule that I can only imagine is absolute chaos, finding time to attend this session was an important signal this issue has their full support.
It's time to change the direction
For my farming colleagues, we know that the statistics discussed here are people we know and love, who are a loss to their families, communities, and the agriculture industry. The wonderful thing is that there is very a large group of people who want this to change.
Look at all the co-signatories to the Joint Statement.
These people and groups are seeking to support you to be able to farm in a way that allows you to maintain your wellbeing, and keep doing what you love, without having to sacrifice your mental or physical health.
Please talk to your own representatives in government and let them know how much this matters to you and ask them to support it in parliament. (If you don't know who - or how - to contact them, you can find out here: https://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Contacting_Senators_and_Members)
Support your Farmers Federation – let them know you appreciate this work and ask them how you can support it further. (https://nff.org.au/contact-us/)
Farmers need support, these people want to help. It's great to see.
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Resources from the Presentation
Other resources mentioned at the breakfast in support of Australian Farming communities:
Resources on the National Farmers Federation Website (tailored for farms)
Kids Helpline (so important, because our children who grow up on farms go through a lot!)
If you are feeling distressed after reading this article please reach out to someone you trust in the first instance. If that is not available here are some services you can talk to with an emphasis on rural Australians.
Organisation | Website | Phone |
TIACS - The Home of Blue Collar Counselling | 0488 846 988 | |
Rural Health Connect | 0493 432 144 | |
Rural Aid | 1300 175 594 |
If you are having thoughts of suicide please take a moment, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.
If your life, or the life of someone you know is in danger, please call 000.
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