Trust and a common understanding are far more important to successful advocacy for Australian agriculture than organisation structures or even unity, says National Farmers' Federation president Fiona Simson.
"You know, people often tend to go into a conversation thinking that they're on the same knowledge base as the person that they're talking to," Ms Simson said.
"When we're discussing sensitive issues like energy or climate change at the NFF, we ensure everyone has the same knowledge.
"We make sure that people are getting factual information and balanced information and then we can all move on together towards the policy solution or policy outcome once we have that shared information and shared outcome.
"A blind focus on structure is just divisive and distracting.
"We must continue on with our day jobs, which is very good policy formed by the grassroots, and we need to make sure to focus on that."
Indeed, Ms Simson was firmly focused on opportunities for farmers to gain more from advocacy.
"We're up against it in terms of some of the ways we're responding to social media and in terms of some of the issues, whether it's animal welfare, the use of water or chemicals, whether it's intensive animals," she said.
"Advocacy is needed for good policy to emerge from government but it's also needed with the community and the consumers to bridge some of the gaps in there and I think that's equally as important."
Ms Simson will be on the panel at Stock & Land's Making our Voices Heard event.
You can book tickets to the event, here.