There’s a lot of noise about milk prices right now. And honestly? Most of it’s missing the point.
Yeah, prices need to go up. I’m fully behind that. But 30 cents isn’t going to cut it. The real number is closer to 50 cents to a dollar a bottle. Maybe more.
Here’s the thing people aren’t talking about.
I’m not just a farmer. Gippsland Jersey buys jersey milk from other farmers, process it, bottle it, and get it onto shelves across Victoria and NSW. We see every part of the chain and every part of it is under pressure right now.
Farmers are doing it tough. Milk tanker operators are watching fuel costs that have nearly doubled. Our milk bottles alone jumped 22% almost overnight. Freight costs have surged, fuel levies have gone from around 16% to over 60%. These hits aren’t coming one at a time. They’re all landing at once.
We’ve been absorbing as much of it as we can. Milk runs on tight margins at the best of times. When everything goes right, there’s a small profit. When things go sideways, it turns fast.
Two weeks ago we introduced an Emergency Fuel Levy on our deliveries. Not something we wanted to do. We had no choice. Most of our customers have been incredible about it. A few have said consumers won’t pay more but I don’t buy that. People want to support local. They just need to know it matters.
So if you want to help, tell your supermarket. Ask for local milk. Ask why it’s priced the way it is. That kind of pressure from shoppers is more powerful than people realise. And if your café is pouring Gippsland Jersey or another local milk, say something. Thank them. It’s not always the easy call, even when it’s the right one.
To everyone who’s had our back through this, genuinely, thank you. I think better times are coming. But there’s probably a bit more of the hard stuff before we get there.
Look after each other.
Back Aussie farmers. Back local brands.
Steve,
Gippsland Jersey
#goodforfarmergoodforyou
👉🏻 A few inspiring days in Tasmania soaking up dairy ideas and meeting some incredible people shaping the future of Australian milk and cheese. 🐄🥛🧀
From touring Nick Haddow’s raw milk cheese factory at Bruny Island Cheese Co. and exploring his newest creation The Kiln Tasmania (very cool space!), to visiting Bream Creek Dairy and enjoying incredible hospitality (wine and cheese too) from the Bingley family — thank you Caroline and Charles. It was awesome to share dinner table conversations about business.
A big thank you to Anne Bennett and Richard Bennett at Ashgrove Cheese for sharing their time and showing us around a business producing a huge portion of Tasmania’s fresh milk. An incredible legacy family business story. 
And meeting the inspirational husband-and-wife team at La Cantara Cheese - political refugees from Venezuela who are having an absolute crack, working hard to build an incredible dairy business in the north-west of Tassie. It’s a very cool setup with Lely robots milking cows up close while tourists watch through a glass window inside the cheese factory.
All of these dairies have true paddock-to-plate stories. It’s very awesome.
So many great conversations, ideas, and reminders that the best dairy businesses are built on passion, community, and backing yourself in.
Always good to come home with a head full of inspiration. 🇦🇺🥛
Thank you:
@brunyislandcheese@nickhaddow@kilntasmania@breamcreekdairy@ashgrovecheese@la_cantara_cheeses
G’day Milk Drinkers,
With conflict escalating overseas, fuel prices are climbing. Diesel has jumped to around $2.20/L in Warragul, and there are warnings it could rise further if global supply tightens.
For farming regions like ours, fuel ISN’T optional - it’s the backbone of the food system.
Fuel powers:
• Tractors and machinery that grow and harvest feed
• Milk tankers that collect milk from farms every day
• The transport that gets milk to our factory
• Delivery trucks that bring fresh dairy to your local shops and cafés
Cows don’t take a day off.
Milk still needs to be collected every single day.
We all need to eat!
When fuel prices spike, it flows through the entire food chain … from farms to factories to supermarket shelves.
At Gippsland Jersey, we’re a small, family-owned dairy business working with other local farmers who care deeply about their animals, their land and their community.
We’ll keep doing what we always do:
showing up, milking cows, making great dairy products and getting them to your fridge.
Times are definitely feeling uncertain.
Choose local when you can.
Every bottle of milk helps keep regional food production strong.
❤️
#SupportLocalFarmers
#GippslandJersey
#AustralianDairy
#GippslandProud
#BuyLocal
We have some serious “Farmer Drama” going on with our Gippsland Jersey farmers… there is a serious KITCHEN WAR going on between farmer @steveronalds and farmer @wallacedalejerseys 😂🙃
Luke’s Gippsland Jersey trifle went viral, Steve’s Gippsland Jersey custard had heaps of comments…
Now they both want each other to make their desserts!!! What do you prefer? The trifle recipe or custard? 😅
Absolute pinch me moment in my career today 🥹 📸
We had 100 dairy farmers, media and politicians come to the launch of our brand new podcast for @gippslandjersey launching in 2026 🎙️
For the past few months we’ve gone and heard and filmed the stories of 12 incredible dairy farmers in Gippsland. The room was full of tears and belly laughs watching the footage.
@salliejones and @steveronalds forever grateful for the opportunity to work with you two legends 🙏🏽
And @salliejones Uncle Mike would be SO unbelievably EXTRA proud of you today 🤍
This week our CEO (and dairy farmer) Steve Ronalds heard the latest stats from the Dairy Farm Monitor Project, which tracks how 80 dairy farms across Victoria performed over the past year.
What was a bit tough to hear is that dryland farms (those without irrigation) - like all of our Gippsland Jersey suppliers across West & South Gippy recorded the least profitable season in many years. In 2024, Gippsland farmers made around two-thirds less profit than their counterparts in other parts of the state. In many cases, that meant they made a loss. Lower milk prices and higher feed costs really bit hard during such a dry 12 months.
Just because the grass looks green doesn’t always mean there’s plenty of feed or that farmers are doing well. We know firsthand that many farmers are struggling, and the mental load is heavy.
As farmers, there’s not much we can control… we just prepare for all things and pray like crazy that things will work out. 🙏💛
If you’re a farmer reading this and you are finding it tough, can we please encourage you to reach out just be frekin’ brave and tell someone what’s going on. We also know that sometimes we don’t want people in our community to know what’s going on and want to be anonymous. If so, here are some helplines you can call when you’re down the back of the farm in your tractor: • Lifeline Australia – 24/7 crisis support: 13 11 14  • Rural Aid Counselling Service – free, confidential support for farmers: 1300 175 594 (Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm AEDT) 
You’re not alone. There is help, and there is hope. 💛
Happy Father’s Day to all the dairy dads out there!
From the early morning milkings to the late nights of fixing stuff, you show your kids what hard work, love, and resilience look like every single day. 💪💛
We hope today brings a little spoiling, a few extra hugs, and a reminder of just how loved you are.
Here’s to strong coffee, happy cows, proud kids who think the world of you… and hopefully a fresh pair of socks without holes @steveronalds 🧦😉.
🌟🥛💛
