Dairy farmers impacted by the collapse of Beston Global Food will receive financial support through a South Australian government assistance program
A $3 million government support scheme will be administered by the South Australian Dairyfarmers’ Association to help farmers left out of pocket due to the collapse of dairy company Beston Global Food.
Beston went into administration on September 23 last year and by November 26, the administrator, KPMG, announced it no longer had the funding to continue operations.
By December 6, milk production ceased and after a creditor meeting on February 21, 2025, Beston was placed into liquidation.
According to the state government, the covid pandemic and rising interest rates have been blamed for contributing to Beston’s collapse.
To help dairy farmers re-establish themselves and grow, grants will be available to those listed as creditors in the Beston liquidation process, enabling them to invest in farm modifications, pay invoices or accounts or reduce working capital debt facilities.
The grants will not exceed the amount lost as a result of Beston going into administration, and applicants will be required to submit a plan for how farmers intend to utilise the funding to grow their business.
SA Dairyfarmers’ Association, within the agreed guidelines, will determine the best way to distribute grants based on each business’ requirements.
“The Beston farmers have had a double whammy, with the impact of a severe drought like all other farmers, but further complicated by not receiving significant milk payments for milk they had produced,” SA Dairyfarmers’ Association president Robert Brokenshire says.
“This will help them to get through a very tough situation and also be able to pay creditors in the regions that have been waiting many months for their payments of goods supplied to those farmers.”