General News
11 July, 2025
Hay convoy on its way
FORTY trucks full of hay will descend on Camperdown this weekend, bringing hope to farmers across the southwest.
The hay, coming from far north New South Wales, has been paid for by ‘Need for Feed’ and volunteers who will bring it down for farmers across the district.
Despite recent rains, drought continues to devastate farms across the state, including the western district.
But one man who is working hard to drive a powerful movement that’s keeping livestock alive, farm businesses afloat and rural communities connected is ‘Need for Feed’ founder Graham Cockerell.
Graham not only brings hay, he also brings hugs and hope to some of Australia’s forgotten farming families.
He is not a government official, nor a millionaire philanthropist.
He’s a retired tradie, a proud Lions club member and the ‘Need for Feed’ founder.
This national volunteer-led charity has been delivering emergency hay and supplies to farmers in crisis since 2006.
What Grahame gives is so much more than feed. He delivers hope.
And it all began with a single truckload of hay and a broken heart.
Graham was just 11 years old when his father died by suicide on their family farm.
That grief stayed with him and decades later, during the Millennium Drought when Graham heard that three farmers a week were taking their own lives, he made a decision.
He decided he would not let another family go through what he did.
That’s how Need for Feed began - a Lions Club project that’s grown into one of Australia’s most significant and trusted farm relief organisations.
Since 2006, it has delivered more than $45 million in aid, including over 2,500 truck loads of hay and supplies, and thousands of hours of volunteer support.
“We don’t just bring feed,” Graham said.
“We bring toiletries, hampers, toys for the kids, and always, always, a get-together for the farmers.”
Graham’s own pain has become a source of strength for others.
Under his leadership, ‘Need for Feed’ has grown into a nationwide movement, recognised by state and federal governments as the leading emergency fodder provider in times of fire, flood, and drought.
Entire convoys of volunteers donate their time, trucks, and hearts - rolling into firegrounds, flood zones and drought-stricken towns with a message that cuts through despair: “You are not forgotten.”
