DFMC Farm Loans
DFMC has two categories of loan available to make funds available promptly for suppliers:
1. Disaster Recovery
Following the devastation of a declared disaster, and the likely ensuing disruption, DFMC offers members the facility to secure financial loans to alleviate immediate pressures of operating farms under such conditions. For formal disaster declarations go to www.disasterassist.gov.au
2. Business Productivity & Resilience
To ensure members can take advantage of business opportunities that enhance productivity and/or build resilience DFMC provides the facility to access short-term loans. Examples of business opportunities DFMC will support include:
- Adoption of dairy infrastructure or technology that enhances productivity such as cow monitoring collars, cup removers, vat or refrigeration upgrades.
- Capital investments for projects that enhance the efficiency, effectiveness, or sustainability such as:
- Calf shed upgrades, of onsite staff accommodation, additional dairy stock and/or pasture management infrastructure.
- Feed resilience such as silage or hay storage,
- Water resilience such as on-farm water storage or management improvements, or irrigation projects.
- Energy reliability & efficiency enhancements such as generators, solar power, batteries
- Environmental impact reduction projects such as riparian zone planting to mitigate nitrogen leaching, carbon baselining, or feed supplement trials.
- Forward contracting or meeting payment terms for feed purchases.
Maximum Loan Amount
The maximum loan amount is the higher of either:
- 50% of a member’s share capital in the co-operative or
- 50% of the average Net monthly milk payment based on the previous twelve months
- up to a maximum of $75,000
General
The co-operative has placed limits on the total funds to be approved both on an overall basis and per region.
At all times the decision whether to lend money under the Farm Loan Policy remains with the Board of DFMC
DFMC may, in respect of new or future loans, discontinue the policy and /or change the guidelines (including the Terms and Conditions).
Terms and Conditions
- a DFMC Farm Loan is to be used to fund working capital and operational expenses of the dairy farm business and must not be used wholly or predominantly for personal, household or domestic purposes.
- a DFMC Farm Loan must be repaid within the term of a member’s contract which may include a “balloon” payment in the final month.
- the member irrevocably authorises DFMC to deduct or set off from any moneys payable by DFMC to the member any amount payable by DFMC to the member pursuant to the DFMC Farm Loans Terms and Conditions and to pay those amounts to DFMC.
- No farmer can have more than one loan outstanding at any one time.
- a five percent (5%) interest rate will apply for the duration of the loan. Interest will be applied in arrears at the end of each month based on the daily outstanding loan account balance. Repayments will be deducted evenly on a monthly basis over the term of the loan from the supplier’s milk payment.
Applying for a DFMC Farm Loan
If you’re an active DFMC member and qualify through one of the scenarios outlined above and would like financial assistance in the form of securing a loan from DFMC please fill in the attached form.
In the first instance your Regional Manager will assist with your application.
Download the DFMC Farm Loan Application Form
If you would like more information about applying for a loan, please contact:
Robert Goodwin
Finance Manager
Dairy Farmers Milk Co-operative
PO Box 4132
Geelong Vic 3220
Mobile: 0439 317 716
Email: robert.goodwin@dfmc.org.au