Wednesday, 4 March 2026

 Gaelle BROAD (Northern Victoria) (19:06): (2380) My adjournment is for the Minister for Agriculture regarding the cumulative impact of broiler farms on regional communities. Local residents have raised concerns over the cumulative effect of broiler farm developments in the Moolort Plains region of central Victoria. There are three broiler farm facilities operating within a 10-kilometre radius of their properties. All the plans seem to meet the broiler code specification, and they recently lost a VCAT appeal against another proposed broiler farm. The operator of this farm already had an application for a second shed on another property, plus two more in the Mount Alexander shire. With each new development comes a further increase in noise, smell, dust and truck movements along roads that are not designed to cope with that level of traffic. To quote directly from the correspondence I received, it said:

… these plans seem to meet the broiler code specifications but it is the creeping, cumulative effect these industrial buildings are having on this area which is very concerning. With every new complex there is increased odour, another 850 (Approx) truck movements in and then out on road not capable of handling this, further light pollution, more chicken manure piles not being spread causing self combustion and therefore putting us at high risk, further degradation of our environment , community, biosecurity and the list goes on. Last summer on a day of total fire ban a manure pile 600 meters from our house self combusted. If the northerly winds of later in that day had been blowing we would have been burnt out,. a risk we shouldn’t have to undergo. The Moolort plains are already a very sensitive area with few trees, hills and gullies to trap odours so we suffer greatly from the odour.

These issues raise not only environmental and amenity concerns but also serious safety risks in an environmentally sensitive area. The action I seek is for the minister to review the Victorian Code for Broiler Farms 2009 in relation to this cumulative effect of multiple broiler farms in one area to address these community concerns.