Federated Farmers has laid a complaint with the Commerce Commission about unfair trading in the grain industry.

It says mills are paying New Zealand wheat producers around $100 a tonne less than their Australian counterparts, and it wants to know why.

Feds Grain chairman Ian Morten says the industry is at a loss to explain the difference. Ian Morten says many farmers are losing $400 to $500 per hectare on their gross margin, and if something doesn’t change soon, they’ll look to alternatives.

Mr. Morten says if the grain industry loses its critical mass, others will suffer too, as many plant species used by pastoral farmers are developed in the arable sector.