Members of the Orange Horticultural Branch met last night to discuss the changes.

The Central Western Daily understands that the central region, encompassing Orange, will now share one regional services manager with the central north region.

Fruit grower Guy Gaeta is concerned there are too many complex issues, including biosecurity in orchards in the central region and coal seam gas mining in the central north, for one person to adequately represent farmers.

“In the past the regional services managers have always been flat-out. They weren’t sitting around. We have got a lot of problems in farming. It’s an impossible task and there are things that are not going to be done. It raises the question - is it worth being a member?” he said.

The central region’s regional services manager resigned recently and was not one of the 12 policy and communications staff members who lost their jobs in the restructure.

NSW Farmers’ Association vice-president Peter Darley confirmed the amalgamation and said members would be informed of changes in a letter following this week’s executive council meeting.

“It’s part of the overall restructure. There was always an indication from the members that they wanted a restructure,” he said.

Regional services managers are employed by the association to help members build their farming enterprises, establish networks, visit members who have concerns and lobby on their behalf.

The central north’s manager will now cover an area from Wee Waa in the north to Cowra in the south.

The Orange Horticultural Branch has written to the NSW Farmers’ Association to ask about the loss of the policy manager for horticulture and agricultural chemicals and the amalgamation of that role into another encompassing grains and weeds.

Mr Gaeta understood that the organisation needed to change its operations for financial reasons but disagreed with the way it had been done.

“We’re on our own,” he said.