Victoria
SunRice Cuts 78 Jobs in Riverina Blaming Water Buybacks
Agricultural giant SunRice has confirmed dozens of redundancies in the Riverina region following a month of consultations with staff and unions.
Agricultural giant SunRice has confirmed it will shed dozens of jobs in the Riverina region of New South Wales, following a month-long consultation process with affected workers and trade unions.
According to reporting by wire services, the rice processing company will cut 78 positions and restructure another 92 roles across its regional operations. The decision has sparked concerns from local government representatives, who argue that federal environmental policies are directly impacting agricultural employment.
The job losses have been linked to the Commonwealth's water buyback scheme, which aims to return water to the Murray, Darling Basin environment. Local council officials have publicly blamed these policy settings for reducing the volume of water available to local growers, consequently lowering crop yields and forcing processors to scale back their operations.
SunRice has not yet detailed the specific timeline for the redundancies or identified which individual facilities will bear the brunt of the cuts. It remains unclear how many of the 92 altered positions will involve downgrades, transfers, or reduced hours for the remaining workforce.
The Riverina region is the heart of Australia's rice industry, relying heavily on irrigation from the Murray and Murrumbidgee river systems. Reductions in water allocations typically have a compounding effect on local businesses, flowing from farms to transport operators and processing facilities.
Local advocates have expressed concern that further water recovery targets under the Murray, Darling Basin Plan could trigger additional job losses in agricultural communities. While environmental groups argue water recovery is essential for river health, regional leaders maintain that the economic cost to irrigation communities is becoming too high to bear.
Observers will be watching to see how the federal government responds to growing pressure from regional councils and agricultural peak bodies over the economic impact of the water buyback scheme.
This report draws on original reporting by Wire report.
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