Recent Changes in the Tasmanian Dairy Industry

Recent theorisation in rural studies provides insights that assist interpretation of change in the Tasmanian dairy industry. Coincident with deregulation are fewer dairy farms but increases in production. Factors contributing to change include growth of foreign ownership of dairy properties and manufacturing plant. In particular, New Zealand corporations and private individuals are bringing in different management practices and the Asian market is becoming increasingly important. Government provision of regular, comparative productivity data specific to each dairy operation is an important spur for productivity improvements. The changes have underlying social causes and consequences and reflect complicated connections which produce alterations in many aspects of rural life.