Photo: Forced off: The drought has wreaked havoc with farming families
Farmers Quit in Droves After Long Drought: Report
May 2, 2008
Scopical - Sydney
Tens of thousands of farmers have left their jobs on the land following years of drought and suffering throughout regional Australia.
A new report commissioned by the ABC shows that 10,700 farmers have left the land to find other employment opportunities in the past five-years.
Photo: Forced off: The drought has wreaked havoc with farming families
The ABC says the report is a significant spike from the Government's Census data which showed about 2500 families had left the land to stop farming.
The report found that there had been a drop of 10% in the number of families farming across Australia during the drought.
The data was collected and collated over a five-year period.
The report says the new information shows the devastating effect that the drought and climate change is having on Australia's farming practices.
Overall, the last 20-years has seen a mammoth 30% drop in the number of farming families, the report says.
http://www.scopical.com.au/articles/News/5136/Farmers-quit-in-droves-after-long-drought:-report