The Victorian Farmers Federation United Dairyfarmers of Victoria (VFF UDV) is calling for tweaks to be made to the mandatory Dairy Code of Conduct.
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VFF UDV president Bernie Free said despite a fairly positive overall view of the code, the farmer organisation was seeking a number of changes.
It had put these in a submission to a Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry review looking at potential improvements to the code.
Mr Free said increased transparency was needed around milk supply agreements to assist farmers in ensuring long-term profitability.
"We're calling for the most current version of a Milk Supply Agreement to be published with a separate document recording changes since previous versions to simplify the documentation," he said.
The dairy code prohibits processors from buying milk from farmers without a milk supply agreement in place.
These agreements, which must be published on a processor's website each year, often run to several pages.
Mr Free said the dispute resolution mechanisms in the code needed to be strengthened.
"If we could get the costs of dispute resolution to be based on pro-rata turnover and that producers be permitted to engage in multi-party dispute resolution, but not processors, it would be a fantastic outcome for producers," he said.
Mr Free said overall the code had been a great success since its inception and the tweaks suggested aim to further strengthen it.
"The Code of Conduct has worked well to correct some market failures and to promote improved competition for milk at the farmgate," he said.
"There's no doubt it's had a very positive impact for dairy farmers throughout Victoria."
