Agriculture

A record 1.28 million Murray Cod have been produced and stocked in the Narrandera Fisheries Centre during the past year. Minister for Agriculture, Tara Moriarty, said a record number of fingerlings had now been released at more than 50 sites across the State, including Blowering, Burrendong and Copeton dams, as part of the NSW Government’s Native Fish Stocking Program.

Businesses in regional and rural Australia have prospered in the past year and are well placed to consolidate their gains in the year ahead, NAB’s second annual Horizons Report shows. NAB Executive for Regional and Agribusiness, Khan Horne, said the report reflects a recovery from a bust-boom cycle of drought years followed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Nationals leader and Member for Maranoa David Littleproud said the first 12 months of an Albanese Labor government had been tough for Australian agriculture, with the full effect to be felt in the coming few years ... Mr Littleproud said farmers and processors were making investment decisions not to plant and not to invest, because the government could not provide them confidence of a stable workforce, which was driving down supply and consumer prices up.

Just some of the entertainment at this year's Mackay Show includes :  

Winton Show Society

The nation is on track to plant an impressive 23.48 million hectare winter crop this year – up slightly on last year’s crop area – Rabobank says in its newly-released 2023/24 Australian Winter Crop Outlook ... overall harvest totals are forecast to be lower than last season, with expectations of drier growing conditions due to the likely transition to an El Nino climate cycle, the specialist agribusiness bank says.

Mount Larcom & District Show Society

In receiving the 2023 Dr Helen Proudfoot Women in Planning Award which recognises her outstanding contributions which have enhanced and improved agricultural planning policies ... DPI employee Tamara Prentice remains dedicated in her commitment to ensuring agricultural land maintains a pivotal role in the increasingly competitive rural landscape, and is motivated by her love of the natural environment.

A new partnership is taking action to promote greater awareness, vigilance and understanding of the different farm biosecurity risks caused by the current ‘explosion’ in pest animals – especially pigs ... (t)hese serious concerns are being addressed in a new campaign that’s taking positive action on biosecurity protections, with Grain Producers Australia (GPA) joining with the Sporting Shooters’ Association of Australia (SSAA National).

South Australia’s tourism industry is well positioned to target the nation’s $17.4 billion Agricultural Tourism market – leveraging its reputation for premium produce to attract more visitors ... The State Government through the South Australian Tourism Commission is launching the South Australian Agritourism Sector Plan 2025 ... A number of demand-driving agritourism experiences already exist in South Australia, including pick-your-own experiences at Beerenberg Farm...

The DPIRD researchers are working with commercial rock lobster and crab fishers to deploy and retrieve high tech cameras that film the marine environment and fish on their way down to the seabed as well as record the water temperature on the ocean floor ... DPIRD said by the middle of this year, more than 30 of the so-called POTBots will be deployed off Western Australia...

It was about speed and presentation (that’s where the parsley comes in) in the Great Boning Wars that took place on the back of a truck in the middle of roundabout turned cattle ring in Walker St, Casino. It was Beef Week Saturday, May 27, and the art of de-boning meat was a spectator sport.

Farm fertiliser "affordability" is starting to improve across the globe, with a likely recovery in application in some regions in 2023, Rabobank says in a recently-released report ... The report, titled Improved Affordability Ahead, says global fertiliser prices had begun to trend higher in 2021 due to supply chain constraints resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The State Government’s decision earlier this week to end the native forestry industry effective January 2024 came as a shock to the whole sector, clearly with zero consultation with any forestry industry representatives. Timber Towns Victoria calls the decision ‘reckless’ and ‘irresponsible’, condemning the decision.

‘Branching Out”, the latest report on the NSW native forestry by the Blueprint Institute, was released on 26 April and put into the media with the subeditorial line “Report outlines economic benefit of ending native forest logging’ ... The Report should be marked ‘draft’ given its deficiencies - and that is being generous.

Did you know: If you poured all the grain—canola, lentils, hay and silage—produced each year in the Buloke Shire into the MCG it would overflow? The BCG Buloke Farm Tours, launching this August, are a new initiative to showcase the produce, passion and dedication of farming communities in the Buloke Shire.  

So far in May, the S&P GSCI Agriculture Index has declined a modest 0.6% amid the renewal of the Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI) and ample grain and oilseed supplies ... Losses across most G&O markets (-2.6% on average) were largely offset by gains across softs (+2.2%).

South Australia’s biggest saleyards, the Naracoorte Regional Livestock Exchange (NRLE), is set to increase the footprint of its undercover cattle section by 40 percent in a multi-million-dollar upgrade. An expanded roof, a revamp of the unloading ramp area and truck wash modifications form part of the improvements that will see around $2 million spent at the facility.

The decision by the Victorian government to bring forward the end of native forest logging to January 2024 has been met with differing reactions ... "There are very few production systems on the globe that offer stronger sustainability credentials than well managed native forests. In fact, we know that well managed native forests can actually provide superior biodiversity, fire and climate outcomes": President of Forestry Australia, Dr Michelle Freeman ... On the other side of the coin, the Victorian National Parks Association ...

A South Australian bull created a bidding frenzy in the sale barn at the recent 58th Herefords Australia National Sale to sell for the top price of $75,000. Held at the Wodonga Exhibition Centre, the sale was southern Australia’s single biggest multi-vendor British bred offering with 53 vendors from NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

A landmark report by the National Farmers’ Federation and KPMG released on 25 May 2023 has underscored the need for better engagement to unlock the economic potential of Indigenous agriculture. The Realising the Opportunity report, released at an NFF forum in Darwin on 25 May 2023, aims to strengthen the economic and cultural empowerment of Indigenous Australians through accessible and collaborative pathways in agriculture.