More than 100 nominations, 133 days and 39 towns later, Stanhope, in northern Victoria, has been announced as Australia’s Legendairy Capital.
This small town in the Murray Dairy region, home to just 490 people, is the first to hold the coveted title, which has been awarded as part of Dairy Australia’s inaugural search for the nation’s most vibrant and resilient dairying communities.
Dairy Australia’s managing director, Ian Halliday, said that since the search began in April, he had been extremely impressed by the large number of stories of the tireless contribution dairyfarmers made to improve the social fabric of their regional towns.
“It’s wonderful to be able to shine a light on Australia’s dairyfarmers and these Legendairy communities who are proud, innovative and inspiring," he said.
"Stanhope is a close-knit community that has faced its share of challenges, but it has also thrived by pulling together through the good and tough times.”
Originally founded as a soldier settlement during the World War I, dairy quickly became an important industry and remains so today.
The Stanhope community agrees that without dairy, which is a way of life for so many residents, the town would be a different place.
From sporting teams and social groups, to schools and emergency services, the Legendairy people of Stanhope are not afraid of hard work, many of them volunteering their time to make the town what it is today.
Australian Dairy Farmers (ADF) congratulated Stanhope on the award.
ADF president Noel Campbell said the search for the dairy capital had exceeded industry expectations in drawing significant attention to the central role dairy plays in Australia’s rural and regional communities.
“43,000 Aussies are directly employed in the farming and processing sectors of our industry. A further 100,000 rely on the dairy industry for their work,” Mr Campbell said.
“As the economic backbone for many rural and regional communities across Australia, dairy enhances livelihoods and improves the wellbeing of these communities.
"For towns like Stanhope, dairy is a defining aspect of what makes their town great – the Legendairy Capital search has shone a light on this.”
As the Legendairy Capital of the Murray Dairy region, Stanhope received a $2500 community grant to enhance a playground at the Stanhope Recreation Reserve.
That project, identified and supported by the many groups and local residents in the town, will now receive a further $7500.
A community event will be held in Stanhope in the near future to celebrate the news and the people behind the nomination.
To see and hear from the proud and passionate people of Stanhope, watch their video: www.legendairy.com.au/dairy-talk/Stanhope.
The seven remaining regional finalists that also received a $2500 grant to invest in a community project are:
*Meeniyan (Gippsland);
*Peterborough (Western Victoria);
*Comboyne (New South Wales);
*Monto (Subtropical);
*Port Elliot (South Australia);
*Smithton (Tasmania); and
*Northcliffe (Western Australia).
The bi-annual search for Australia’s Legendairy Capital will begin again in 2017 and once again, Dairy Australia will be encouraging towns across all dairy regions to nominate.
For more information on Australia’s Legendairy Capital 2015 visit www.legendairy.com.au/dairy-talk/capital.
