It has been a mixed 48 hours for Tasmania's farmers, with potato growers winning a better deal, while poppy growers were dealing with fall out from unfair accusations made in court on the other side of the world.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Simplot raised its first offer of a $20 per tonne increase for all varieties of potatoes in the upcoming season by $15 per tonne.
The vegetable processor has also committed to a minimum $10 per tonne increase next year.
In danger of losing the mantle of being one of Tasmania's agricultural staples, tight pricing meant potatoes were becoming a crop that farmers had trouble making money from.
As TFGA Vegetable Council chairman Nathan Richardson said, the increase meant farmers had "the ability to plan where they want to go".
On the other side of the field, Tasmanian Alkaloids was singled out in an Oklahoma District Court judgement as starting the United States' opioid addiction crisis.
Tasmanian Alkaloids was the main supplier of raw opium to Johnson & Johnson, the company at the centre of the court action, at a time when opioids were being aggressively marketed in the US, but Oklahoma state solicitor Brad Beckworth's legal argument has unfairly placed the business - and the state's poppy farmers - in the firing line.
Sassafras poppy farmer Rick Rockliff points out that he and his fellow producers, along with Tasmanian Alkaloids, have always operated completely within the law.
"...trying to blame Tasmanian farmers is absolutely ridiculous," Mr Rockliff said.
"We provide legal pain control for many people around the world that needed it. Some people abused it, and I can't see how they can possibly hold anyone in Tasmania responsible for that."
Hear, hear Mr Rockliff.
Agriculture had a gross value of $1.60 billion in 2017-18, showing this is an industry that should be taken seriously.
This means paying farmers fairly for their produce and not bringing that high quality produce into disrepute with unsound court judgements.