Naturally it also helps when most of the crops in the Wimmera are looking fairly handy as we navigate a dry finish and hopefully the end of the spring frosts. It's been a very busy few weeks for me traveling to almost every corner of the state visiting farmers and having community meetings.

The state is a complete mixed bag for farmers on a spectrum of dry to wet and both crops and pastures reflecting the same. The Millewa west of Mildura is one of the toughest areas I've seen with many farmers hoping to just get seed while Tatyoon south of Ararat is again looking like the pick of the cropping areas.

I've got mates who have been bogging tractors all winter around Hamilton while most of the central areas have been getting rain just in time to keep their crops and pastures going.

The price of water has been the talk of all northern farmers which has a huge effect on livestock values and ultimately hay and grain prices for rations all over the state.

Domestically agriculture seems to be more connected that I have ever seen with the adversity of some directly affecting the fortune of others. Traditionally coming from a strong export focus it really does show how variable both our climate and production are to annually provide a consistent product.

Last week I represented Victorian Farmers Federation members at the Parliamentary Inquiry into the Impact of Animal Rights Activism on Victorian Agriculture. Animal welfare was the absolute focus of our discussion and how the law should defend law abiding farmers. The committee made up of members from the Legislative Council are diverse as the people who have presented to them.

It has again highlighted to me that there is a huge discussion within the community about the philosophy of how, why and what we produce.

Looking at the range of submissions presented it continues to show me that there is a ground range of alternative voices willing to critique what we do on our behalf and the importance of farmers to a voice to represent them.

So as the season turns too mid-spring and we start to gear up for hay making and harvest it's a good time to plan to make our farmers more resilient and realise that our season is extremely handy considering what other farmers are facing.