Photo: 123rf
Farmer confidence has remained at an all-time low in the latest bi-annual Federated Farmers survey.
More than two thirds of the 1400 farmers surveyed consider the current economic conditions to be 'bad'.
A cluster of factors was making for challenging conditions in the sector, Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford told RNZ's Nine to Noon.
"We've seen a significant dry patch across much of the South Island, some of the lower North Island.
"Meanwhile, we've still got farms rebuilding after the cyclone from last year as well, on top of that some significantly low commodity prices, especially for lamb and it's a real recipe for disaster in terms of farmer confidence."
Tough times on the farm - how is it impacting mental health?
For many farmers it's a "grind," Rural Support Trust national chairperson Neil Bateup said.
"The higher costs, higher interest rates, weather-related issues are just grinding on and it makes it quite difficult for people to see a lot of light ahead."
Langford said three-quarters of farmers were breaking even or making a loss.
"That was the last season. And now when we ask them, what does it look like going forward, it actually gets worse rather than better."
Conditions had not favoured feed stock, he said.
"Within the farming system we need to get a build-up of feed going into the winter. And we didn't get that this year because it was so dry, so farmers were going into winter with significantly less feed, and then, because it's now so cold, obviously we don't get a lot of grass.
"Now they're really hanging out for a good spring, for that grass to take off and for feed to come available."
Neil Bateup and Wayne Langford. Photo: Supplied
These pressures were likely weighing on farmers, adding to the mental health problems that could come with that, they said.
Langford has been open about his struggles with mental health in the past.
"The hardest bit is the decision making I think, a lot of time, we make hundreds of decisions in a day that we don't even realise we're making.
"And when your brain starts to get a bit foggy, and things start to overwhelm you, you stop making those decisions. And then, as you can imagine, what happens on farm, those just all compound on top of each other."
Access to mental health services in regional New Zealand was patchy, Bateup said.
"There's some real issues in some of the regions of New Zealand. Some are okay, where we can access counselling or GP support or even a crisis team.
"But there are areas of New Zealand where there just isn't a professional team there that that can be accessed."
Even accessing GP appointments was difficult, he said.
"I was talking to a farmer in one area not long ago, he rang up for an appointment, was told that they didn't have an appointment in the next three months. He said, Well, what about after that? And they said, well, we're not taking appointments past three months, so he had no access, even though he was a registered client of that that practice."
On the upside, there was much more openness in the farming community about mental health problems, he said.
"Now we actually do get male farmers ring up and say, 'Hey, we're just not tracking so well, we'd like to talk to somebody, somebody come and see us, so that there has been a change over the years.
"I've been involved for about 20 years now, and certainly that wouldn't have happened 20 years ago."
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