Moree-based farmer Oscar Pearse plans to use his new position as NSW Farmers Board Member to spruik the benefits of becoming an association member and to pursue a better deal for farmers in the carbon farming market.
The experienced cropper whose family has been in the north-west area for more than 100 years, was elected to the position at the NSW Farmers Annual Conference in Sydney last week.
“NSW Farmers does a huge amount of work for every farmer, every farmer benefits, but it is a challenge to make sure everyone sees there is benefit, and helps to participate in getting that benefit,” Pearse said.
Pearse is passionate about recruiting new and younger members to the association and had discussions at the conference around potential changes to make it easier for younger people to participate.
He says the recruitment of a larger membership base is important to ensure farmers across New South Wales have a voice amongst the state and federal decision makers.
“We are working on rules and ways of running the association and holdings meetings that were designed back when there were Clydesdale teams. Everyone saw what could be done online during COVID,”
“Hopefully we can fire things up a little bit more and make it clear that there is real value in being a member and participate as a member too,” he said.
Another focus for Pearse is creating more competition within the emerging suitability and environmental markets and lowering costs for farmers looking move into the carbon farming space.
Currently, there are more than 900 carbon farming projects registered with the Clean Energy Regulator.
“So the Farmers association working with some not for profits is something I really want to check out, because we could potentially help the association help farmers and actually make the market place a lot more competition,” he said.
Pearse has an extensive background in advocating for agricultural policy and has held policy development positions with Cattle Council of Australia, Meat & Livestock Australia, Australian Lot Feeders’ Association and AgForce Queensland.
He currently lives on his dryland cropping and cattle property with his three children, and wife Susannah Pearse who is currently the Deputy Mayor of Moree.
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