Without the protections afforded by the single desk and buyer of last resort mechanisms following the Federal Government’s decision to end Australian Wheat Board’s export monopoly, growers are facing the chilling prospect of being unable to sell the grain they have waited so long to grow.

Initial prices of about $450 a tonne offered earlier in the year have since plummeted to as low as $200 a tonne. With farmers needing about $300 a tonne to recover costs, they have little choice but to store their grain on-farm in the hope of receiving better offers in the months ahead.

Peter Cannon from the Wheat Growers’ Action Group, which lobbied furiously against Agriculture Minister Tony Burke’s decision to scrap the single desk, said the Government must intervene to ensure the accredited traders gave farmers a fair deal.

“The situation at the moment is that there are very few offers in the grain market for cash and the offers are ridiculous – below cost of production,” Mr Cannon said.

“Anyone who wants to sell can’t sell at that price because they would never be able to afford to put a crop in for next year.”

Weethalle grower Michael Healy said after eight years suffering through the drought it was devastating to be left in such a precarious situation.

“We’ve had a real bad run over several years and finally when we get a bit of grain it’s not worth anything,” Mr Healy said.

“(The grain traders) are trying to get the farmers to panic and sell the grain for next to nothing so that they can line their own pockets.”

Local farmer Rodney Guest was feeling optimistic about the future when he planted wheat, canola, peas, barley and oats on his property between Rankins Springs and Goolgowi earlier this year.

Now though, as he starts to strip his first substantial crop since 2000, Mr Guest is wracked by uncertainty. “There is no future in farming at these prices,” Mr Guest said.

“The message farmers are being sent is that (the Government) don’t want us.”