Comment: There is a lot of good out there

Federated Farmers Dairy Chairperson Chris Lewis. Photo / Supplied

Comment: Keep focused on the good news rural stories and you'll be heartened by what they are and how many exist, writes Federated Farmers Dairy Chairperson Chris Lewis.

Here's my message to those who work the land: Please keep sharing the great work you do on the farm and in your communities.

I know a lot of you feel you are the whipping boys of late, with the Government's proposed changes being debated all the time.

You can't escape it - if you read the newspapers or news sites, or have a discussion at a sport event, everyone is an expert, especially those who have never spent a day on a farm, or at least not since their childhood.

Read more from Federated Farmers here.

These people who 'know it all' have never taken the time to investigate the huge changes, investment and innovation already well underway in the agriculture sector.

All the Federated Farmers members I talk to are quick to point this out to me, and proudly so.

One to keep focused on is that we lead the world in meat and milk production efficiency by most measures, including some of the lowest greenhouse gas emissions per kilogram of product in the world.

As well as protecting land under QEII covenants, many of our members are engaged in community catchment groups, too, working with their communities to achieve great outcomes on water quality and biodiversity protection.

The ones missing from all this work and engagement are the antagonists who like giving us the verbal, but their words don't match their work effort.

Their political attacks on us are aimed at driving a wedge between farmers and their city friends.

We must remember: this is a political attack by a minority. It's not the wider community, as we all know there are many issues we all must take hold of.

While many of you won't believe it, there are more good news farming stories in the mainstream and rural media than bad. It's just that we are tuned to look for the bad ones.

It's a bit like hitting each other when you see a 'rare' yellow car – who knew there were so many!

So keep focused on the good news stories and you'll be heartened by what they are and how many exist.

Leadership is about looking at the issues, finding solutions and doing the work.

That's what Feds does well.